TRANSPORT

A127

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans his Department has for improving the A127; what improvements have been made to the A127 between Basildon and Southend-on-Sea during 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The A127 is not a trunk road and so is the responsibility of local highway authorities; these are Southend on Sea borough council for the section of the road within the borough boundary and Essex county council for the section beyond to Basildon. Plans for future improvements to the road, and details of any which have already been carried out, are therefore matters for these authorities.

A2 Roadworks

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the effect on holiday and business traffic of the proposed roadworks to be carried out on the A2 at Boughton Green between 17 July and 8 September; and why it is necessary for the roadworks to be carried out at the peak of the summer holiday season.

Stephen Ladyman: When assessing the effect on holiday and business traffic of the essential safety works on the A2 at Boughton, the Highways Agency has considered average daily traffic flows and the variation of traffic flows in the peak and off peak hours.
	No material differences in average daily flows were found for July, August and September, with August flows being some 3 per cent. lower than July and September. This indicates that there is no significant summer peak in traffic flows.
	In terms of the variation of traffic flows in the peak and off-peak hours, after 9.30 am until 4 pm one lane will provide sufficient capacity, enabling one lane to be closed for the roadworks.

A3 Tunnel (Hindhead)

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to publish the Inspector's Report following the Public Inquiry into the A3 Tunnel at Hindhead; and whether he has accepted the recommendations of the Inspector.

Stephen Ladyman: holding answer 14 July 2006
	The Inspector's report will be published with the decision on the scheme taken jointly by the Secretary of State for Transport, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. This will be issued soon and convey whether the Inspector's recommendations have been accepted.

Car Journeys

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the Department's working assumption is about the number of car journeys a year generated by each new house built.

Stephen Ladyman: holding answer 13 July 2006
	The number of car trips generated by each new house built is considered to be the same as the number of car trips generated by existing houses and, in Great Britain, is approximately nine trips per week.
	Underlying this average are trip rates for different categories of households using information from the National Travel Survey. A key determinant of trip rate is the number of cars owned and the location of the household. For existing households in Kettering and Great Britain, the averages for households by numbers of cars owned is tabled as follows:
	
		
			  Number of cars owned by household  Average car trips made in Kettering per week  Average car trips made in Great Britain per week 
			 0 4 4 
			 1 7 8 
			 2 plus 14 15 
		
	
	It should be noted that households with no car can still have a car available to travel. For example, they can hire a car or have access to a company car.

Clifton Suspension Bridge

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to the Department was of the most recent inquiry into the toll levels on the Clifton Suspension Bridge; how many people lodged objections which led to the calling of that inquiry; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: Since the coming into force of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Act 1952, toll charges at the Clifton Suspension Bridge have been revised three times: in 1976, 1982 and most recently 2003. The Department has no record of whether inquiries were held for the 1976 and 1982 toll revisions. The 2003 toll revision application received no objections and was considered and approved without the need for a local inquiry.
	The operator of the Clifton Suspension Bridge and the Trustees of the Clifton Suspension Bridge, applied to the Secretary of State Department in October 2005 for an order to revise the maximum tolls for using the bridge. Five objections have been received to this application. The trust has been advised that if it wishes to continue with its application, there will have to be an inquiry. No date, as yet, has been set for this inquiry.

High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the high occupancy vehicle lane on the M1 will be the  (a) outside and  (b) inside lane of the motorway.

Stephen Ladyman: It is currently anticipated that the dedicated high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes on the M1 would be positioned in the outside lane, i.e. adjacent to the central reservation in both directions. However, the final decisions on how the proposals for HOV lanes at this location will be taken forward will be made only once the Highways Agency has completed further work to elaborate the details of the proposed scheme.

Highways Agency

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was spent by the Highways Agency in using trenchless technology for cabling, ducting and underground service installation in each year since 2001; and what proportion this represents of the overall spending for this work in each year.

Stephen Ladyman: A single figure for how much has been spent is not held centrally.

Highways Agency

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport to what extent the Highways Agency uses minimum dig or trenchless technology when undertaking works for the installation of cables, ducts and underground services on the road network; and what technology it uses.

Stephen Ladyman: The Highways Agency's use of minimum dig or trenchless technology is limited to thrust-boring beneath carriageways where existing cross-carriageway ducts are unserviceable. When undertaking works for the installation of cables, ducts or underground services in the verges of its roads, it installs armoured cables or ducts in trenches in accordance with BS7671, at a sufficient depth to avoid cables or ducts being damaged by any reasonably foreseeable disturbance of the ground.

M6

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has granted funding to the Heysham M6 Link, subject to planning approval.

Stephen Ladyman: The Heysham scheme does not yet have scheme approval but Ministers have agreed with the region's recommendation that it may receive funding in the next three years.
	The Department's provision of funding will, of course, be subject to the scheme securing all necessary statutory powers, demonstrating sufficient value for money, and being supported by a satisfactory business case in line with the departmental requirements.

Pavement Parking

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what legislation proscribes vehicle parking on pavements; and what penalties the legislation provides.

Gillian Merron: There is no specific national legislation which proscribes vehicle parking on pavements. However, local traffic authorities can make traffic regulation orders, under powers in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, to both ban pavement parking in certain areas and also allow specific exemptions from the ban.
	Section 137 of the Highways Act 1980 makes it an offence to obstruct a highway without lawful authority. The pedestrian footway is part of a highway. The police may issue a fixed penalty notice for such obstruction. However, in London, by virtue of section 8 of the London Local Authorities and Transport for London Act 2003, authorised officers of borough councils and Transport for London are also empowered to issue a fixed penalty notice for the offence of obstruction under section 137 of the 1980 Act.

Speed Limits

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will increase the discretion to local highways authorities in respect of the installation of national speed limit signs at the end of any zone where a lower speed limit is in operation.

Gillian Merron: Local highway authorities have the power to set speed limits at an appropriate level. All changes of speed limit are required by law to be clearly signed to allow drivers ample time to adjust their speed accordingly and drivers are required to know the speed limit in force at any given time. It is important to retain national consistency.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Cabinet Committees

Derek Conway: To ask the Leader of the House which Minister chaired the Cabinet Sub-Committee which considered including the Armed Forces Discipline Bill in the current legislative programme; and which Ministers were members of the Sub-Committee.

Jack Straw: All Bills are considered by the Ministerial Committee on the Legislative Programme (LP), whose terms of reference are "to consider legislation and related matters". Membership at the time was as follows:
	Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons (Chair)
	Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State
	Secretary of State for Transport and Secretary of State for Scotland
	Secretary of State for Defence
	Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Chief Whip
	Home Secretary
	Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Secretary of State for Wales
	Minister without Portfolio
	Leader of the House of Lords and Lord President of the Council
	Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and Lord Chancellor
	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Minister for the Cabinet Office)
	Chief Secretary to the Treasury
	Chief Whip, Lords, Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentleman-at-Arms
	Attorney-General
	Advocate-General
	Deputy Leader of the House of Commons.

Parliamentary Questions

Anne Main: To ask the Leader of the House if he will ensure that all Ministers comply with the Resolution of the House of 18 December 1972 as it applies to the timeliness of answers to parliamentary questions.

Jack Straw: All Ministers recognise the obligation, deriving from the decisions of the House of 18 December 1972, that a written question tabled for a named day should receive an answer on that day and an ordinary written question should receive a substantive response within a working week of it being tabled. I attach great importance to the timeliness of responses to parliamentary questions tabled in the House and, as I have indicated to the House, I have raised the matter directly with ministerial colleagues.
	I also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr. Bone) on 10 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1560W.

Prime Minister's Questions

Peter Bone: To ask the Leader of the House 
	(1)  how many Prime Minister's questions sessions there were in each year since 1990;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of Prime Minister's question sessions likely to be held in 2006.

Jack Straw: The information is available by parliamentary session. The number of days on which oral questions to the Prime Minister were taken in each session is given in the following table. The figures for sessions for the period before 1997 to 98 are not comparable with those subsequently. The arrangements for Prime Minister's questions were changed at that time, with twice weekly fifteen minute slots being replaced by one weekly thirty minute slot so that no less time is spent in the Chamber. To make a more accurate comparison a table of the approximate hours involved is also given.
	
		
			  Before 1997 to 98 
			  Session  Number of sessions  Approximate number of hours involved  Total sittings days 
			 1989-90 62 15.5 167 
			 1990-91 61 15.25 160 
			 1991-92 (short session) 32 8 83 
			 1992-93 (long session) 89 22.25 240 
			 1993-94 59 14.75 154 
			 1994-95 65 16.25 159 
			 1995-96 61 15.25 146 
			 1996-97 (short session) 35 8.75 86 
		
	
	
		
			  After 1997 to 98 
			  Session  Number of sessions  Approximate number of hours involved  Total sittings days 
			 1997-98 (long session) 50 25 241 
			 1998-99 32 16 149 
			 1999-2000 35 17.5 170 
			 2000-01 (short session) 17 8.5 83 
			 2001-02 (long session) 42 21 201 
			 2002-03 37 18.5 162 
			 2003-04 36 18 157 
			 2004-05 (short session) 14 7 65 
		
	
	The number for the 2005-06 session so far (up to and including Wednesday 12 July) is 41 (20.5 hours). Given the planned dates for further sittings so far announced, four more Prime Minister's questions days can be expected up to the end of October. The number of such days for the remainder of the session, and for the beginning of the next session, will be dependent on the dates for prorogation and the Christmas recess.

Sitting Days

Peter Bone: To ask the Leader of the House 
	(1)  how many days the House sat in each year since 1990; and how many days were allocated to Private Members' business;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of days the House is likely to sit in 2006; and how many days are expected to be allocated for private Members' Bills.

Jack Straw: The information is available by parliamentary Session. The number of days on which the House sat in each Session, together with the number of private Members' days, is given in the table. Private Members' days include days allocated to private Members' Bills and (up to 1993-94) balloted private Members' motions. (Balloted private Members' motions were ended after that Session, in favour of greater opportunities for Back-Bench adjournment debates).
	
		
			  Session  Private Members' days  Total sitting days 
			 1989-90 24 167 
			 1990-91 22 160 
			 1991-92(1) 12 83 
			 1992-93(2) 24 240 
			 1993-94 23 154 
			 1994-95 13 159 
			 1995-96 13 146 
			 1996-97(1) 7 86 
			 1997-98(2) 13 241 
			 1998-99 13 149 
			 1999-2000 13 170 
			 2000-01(1) 8 83 
			 2001-02(2) 13 201 
			 2002-03 13 162 
			 2003-04 13 157 
			 2004-05(1) 4 65 
			 (1) Short Session. (2) Long Session. 
		
	
	The number of sitting days for the 2005-06 Session up to and including 14 July is 182, of which 12 have been allocated to private Members' Bills. Given the planned dates for further sittings so far announced, 21 more sitting days can be expected up to the end of October, of which one would be allocated to private Members' Bills. The number of sitting days for the remainder of the Session, and for the beginning of the next Session, will be dependent on the dates for prorogation and the Christmas recess.

Summer Recesses

Peter Bone: To ask the Leader of the House how many days there were in the summer recess in each year since 1990.

Jack Straw: The total number of days (including weekends and bank holidays) between the rise of the House in July and the return in October in each year since 1990, excluding sitting days, was as follows:
	
		
			   Number of days 
			 1990 (1)78 
			 1991 80 
			 1992 (2)92 
			 1993 82 
			 1994 87 
			 1995 88 
			 1996 81 
			 1997 87 
			 1998 (3)77 
			 1999 83 
			 2000 86 
			 2001 (4)83 
			 2002 (5)81 
			 2003 (6)77 
			 2004 (7)70 
			 2005 75 
			 2006 (8)75 
			 (1 )Excludes sittings on 6 and 7 September. (2 )Excludes sittings on 24 and 25 September. (3) Excludes sittings on 2 and 3 September. (4 )Excludes sittings on 14 September and 4 and 8 October. (5) Excludes sitting on 24 September. (6 )Excludes September sitting 8 to 18. (7 )Excludes September sitting 7 to16. (8 )Planned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Accommodation

Andrew Dismore: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what average square metreage of office space is allocated per person to  (a) all hon. Members,  (b) hon. Members who are Ministers,  (c) hon. Members who are not Ministers, (d) hon. Members' staff based on the estate and  (e) senior House officials; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: Evidence on office space allocation and occupancy was submitted to the Administration Committee's inquiry into House of Commons Accommodation earlier this year. This evidence is published with that Committee's Third Report of the Session, HC 1279. The answer that follows is based on that information, which represents a sample at a given moment in time.
	 (a) The Accommodation Whips have approximately 14,800 sq m of office space available to allocate to Members, an average of 22.9 sq m per Member. In practice, however, some of this accommodation is unoccupied or occupied by Members' staff. Of the office space currently used by Members, the average area available for each Member is 14.3 sq m.
	 (b) and  (c) Of the total office space available to the Accommodation Whips, 1,300 sq m is designated ministerial accommodation, an average of 16.9 sq m per Minister. This leaves 13,500 sq m of office space not designated ministerial accommodation which the Accommodation Whips have available to allocate to other hon. Members. However, Ministers also occupy some Members' accommodation not designated for Ministers, while some ministerial rooms are occupied by Members' staff.
	 (d) The average space available to individual Members' staff is estimated at 9.2 sq m per person, based on 1,230 desk spaces in areas allocated by the Serjeant at Arms and in Members' accommodation.
	 (e) 1,735 staff of the House, 1,257 of whom are desk-based, occupy 13,140 sq m of office space, giving an average density of 7.6 or 10.5 sq m per person depending on the method of calculation used. Disaggregated information is not held on space occupied by senior staff of the House.

Accommodation

Andrew Dismore: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what consideration has been given to turning accommodation at 2 and 3 Parliament Street and 4 Canon Row into further office space for hon. Members and their staff.

Nick Harvey: The houses are structurally unsuitable for use as offices.

Accommodation

Andrew Dismore: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2006,  Official Report, column 823W, on Officers of the House (Accommodation), what the estimated annual rental value is of the properties concerned.

Nick Harvey: No estimate of the annual rental value of these properties has been made. Because they are physically part of the secure Parliamentary Estate, it would not be feasible to offer the properties for rent.

Senior Staff Appointments

Andrew Dismore: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what the procedure is for the appointment of  (a) the Clerk of the House and  (b) other senior House staff; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: The Clerk of the House is appointed by the Crown under letters patent on the recommendation of the Speaker and the Prime Minister. The posts of Clerk Assistant and Serjeant at Arms are also Crown appointments. Under section 2(1) of the House of Commons (Administration) Act 1978, all other appointments (other than Mr. Speaker's personal staff) are made on the authority of the House of Commons Commission. The Commission has delegated these powers of appointment to Mr. Speaker in relation to posts of head of Department (and, in some cases, their deputies) and to heads of Department for the remainder. These appointments are made on the basis of internal or external competition, as appropriate.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Building Regulations

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will assess the merits of including the inspection of the cavity wall insulation required under the building regulations as part of the statutory inspections carried out on properties by a building control officer.

David Hanson: The building regulations require statutory notice of certain works to facilitate inspection of such works. However, they do not require the statutory inspection of those works. Building control officers have the powers to inspect the construction of a building at any reasonable time to ensure compliance with the building regulations.

Dangerous Driving

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many drivers in Northern Ireland were found guilty of dangerous driving in 2005; and how many of that total were restricted drivers.

David Hanson: Statistics on the number of persons convicted of dangerous driving in 2005 are not yet available.
	In 2004, 349 persons were convicted of 'dangerous driving'; an additional 18 were convicted of grievous bodily harm by dangerous driving and a further six of death by dangerous driving. It is not possible to determine how many of these related to restricted drivers.

Dentistry

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the gross cost was of  (a) dental fees for items of service and  (b) dental treatments in each of the last five years; and how much of the cost was borne by patients (i) in total and (ii) as a percentage of the overall cost in (A) Northern Ireland and (B) in each board area.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is provided in the following tables. Information broken down by Health and Social Services Board can only be given for 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05.
	
		
			   Gross cost of items of service (£000)  Gross cost of treatments (£000)  Patients contributions (£000)  Percentage cost borne by patients  Net fees payable (£000) 
			  2000-01  
			 Total 47,602.0 48,019.4 15,145.7 31.5 32,873.7 
			   
			  2001-02  
			 Total 49,805.5 50,254.7 16,041.0 31.9 34,213.8 
			   
			  2002-03  
			  HSS Board  
			 Eastern 21,338.3 21,601.1 7,360.1 34.1 14,241.0 
			 Northern 12,822.0 12,907.1 4,820.7 37.3 8,086.4 
			 Southern 9,208.1 9,267.4 3,013.7 32.5 6,253.8 
			 Western 7,865.2 7,946.2 1,634.0 20.6 6,312.1 
			 Total 51,233.6 51,721.8 16,828.5 32.5 34,893.3 
			   
			  2003-04  
			  HSS Board  
			 Eastern 21,223.2 21,762.0 7,299.0 34.0 14,463.0 
			 Northern 12,648.4 12,691.0 4,711.0 37.0 7,980.0 
			 Southern 9,306.9 9,369,0 3,047.0 33.0 6,322.0 
			 Western 8,350.5 8,500.0 1,570.0 18.0 6,930.0 
			 Total 51,529.1 52,322.0 16,627.0 32.0 35,695.0 
			   
			  2004-05  
			  HSS Board  
			 Eastern 22,030.7 22,646.0 7,485.0 33.0 15,161.0 
			 Northern 12,756.2 12,948.0 4,753.0 37.0 8,195.0 
			 Southern 9,329.0 9,439.0 3,112.0 33.0 6,327.0 
			 Western 7,439.7 7,595.0 1,446.0 19.0 6,149.0 
			 Total 51,555.7 52,627.0 16,797.0 32.0 35,830.0 
			  Notes: 1. Gross cost of treatments will include management fees such as treatment on referral fees and as such will differ from gross cost of items of service. 2. The patient, unless exempt, pays 80 per cent. of the cost of treatment, up to a maximum of £384.  Source: Central Services Agency

Dessie O'Hare

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the Police Service of Northern Ireland has any outstanding warrants for the arrest of Dessie O'Hare.

Paul Goggins: PSNI confirms that there are no formal investigations ongoing in relation to this individual although he remains the subject of attention by the PSNI Historical Enquiries Team (HET) and their ongoing process.

Elections (Public Expenditure)

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much public expenditure was incurred in organising the 2005  (a) local government and  (b) general elections.

David Hanson: £3.6 million public expenditure was incurred in organising the 2005 local government and general election in Northern Ireland. £1.8 million was spent by district councils and £1.8 million by the Electoral Office.

Electronic Listening Devices

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has authorised the use of electronic listening devices in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The hon. Member should be aware that it is not Government policy to comment on specific national security and intelligence matters.

Environment and Heritage Service

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total cost was of bringing court cases by the Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland in each of the last three years; and how much was recouped in fines.

Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
	The Public Prosecution Service prosecutes cases submitted to it by the Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland. No figures are available for the total cost of bringing such cases.
	In those cases prosecuted by the PPS over the last three years, the total of fines imposed were:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2003 23,125 
			 2004 32,525 
			 2005 29,625

Festivals

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much public money has been allocated to the  (a) West Belfast Festival and  (b) Gasyard Feile in Londonderry in each of the last two years.

Maria Eagle: Details of the public monies allocated to the  (a) West Belfast Festival and  (b) Gasyard Feile in Londonderry in each of the last two years is given in the following table:
	
		
			  Financial year  West Belfast Festival (£)  Gasyard Feile 
			 2004-05 360,037.95 0 
			 2005-06 273,768.01 0

Historical Enquiry Team

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many of the cases reviewed by the Historical Enquiry Team in Northern Ireland have resulted in prosecutions.

Paul Goggins: I am advised by the Historical Enquiry Team, which only became operational in January 2006, that to date there have been no prosecutions resulting from the review of unresolved deaths undertaken since then and that due to the reinvestigation process, where relevant, it is too early to tell if any prosecutions are likely.
	It has always been acknowledged that given the time that has passed for a number of cases, the number of prosecutions expected from the review of unresolved deaths is likely to be small. However the aim of the Historical Enquiry Team is to work with the families of victims to answer their questions and provide resolution, where possible, whether it is through judicial or non-judicial means.

Independent Treatment Centres

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many operations, by type, were carried out in independent sector treatment centres in Northern Ireland in the last year for which figures are available.

Shaun Woodward: The information requested is not held centrally and will take some time to collate. I will write to the hon. Member with the relevant information as soon as it becomes available and place a copy in the Library.
	 Substantive answer from Shaun Woodward to Lady Hermon:
	The number of operations, by type, which were carried out in independent sector treatment centres in Northern Ireland is not available. However, the number of operations, by specialty, carried out in independent sector treatment centres in Northern Ireland during the financial year 2005-06, is shown in the table as follows.
	
		
			  Specialty  Number of patients 
			 Dermatology <5 
			 ENT 14 
			 General Surgery 141 
			 Gynaecology <5 
			 Neurosurgery 40 
			 Ophthalmology 321 
			 Paediatric Surgery 46 
			 Plastic Surgery 653 
			 Trauma and Orthopaedics 212 
			 Urology 172 
			 NI total 1,603 
			  Notes: Figures are for the financial year 2005-06. Includes patient transferred for both in-patient and day case. Figures include Board Transfers, Group 2 Transfer and Special measures (NTPOC). Please note that cell sizes that have a value of less than five have been masked in order to help protect confidentiality.  Source:  Health and Social Services Boards

Landfill Sites

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions during 2005 landfill sites in Northern Ireland were found to contain hazardous or toxic materials for which they were not approved.

David Cairns: In 2005, there were 74 licensed landfill sites in Northern Ireland. No sites were allowed to accept hazardous waste, although there are 58 hazardous waste facilities where such material can be processed for off-site shipping, but not landfilled. In 2005, none of the 74 licensed landfill sites in NI were licensed to bury hazardous waste.
	Of the 32 licensed landfill sites inspected by officials from the Environment and Heritage Service, none were found to have accepted hazardous or toxic waste.

Medical Services

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many  (a) GP practices,  (b) dental practices,  (c) ophthalmic practices and  (d) pharmacies there were in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is detailed in the following table.
	
		
			  General practices, dental, ophthalmic and pharmaceutical practices in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years 
			  Number 
			   General practices  Dental surgeries  Ophthalmic practices  Pharmacies 
			 2001 (1)359 n/a n/a (1)509 
			 2002 (1)367 n/a (2)23 1 (1)508 
			 2003 (3)364 n/a (2)235 (1)509 
			 2004 (1)366 (3)362 (2)231 (1)511 
			 2005 (1)364 (1)363 (2)236 (1)510 
			 n/a = Not available. (1) October. (2) March. (3) November.  Source: Central Services Agency.

Medical Services

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many  (a) GPs,  (b) dentists,  (c) optometrists and  (d) pharmacies there were per 100,000 resident population in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years, (i) in total and (ii) broken down by health board.

Paul Goggins: The information requested for parts (i):  (a),  (b) and  (c) is detailed in Table 1. The information for (i):  (d) is not available as the Central Services Agency does not hold information on the number of pharmacists in Northern Ireland. The information requested for (ii):  (a) and  (b) is available for a restricted number of years and is detailed in Tables 2 and 3 respectively. The information for (ii):  (c) and  (d) is not available.
	
		
			  Table 1: Total number of GPs, dentists and optometrists per 100,000 population in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years 
			   General practitioners  Dentists  Optometrists 
			 2001 (1)62.81 (2)239.84 (1)24.03 
			 2002 (1)63.42 (2)40.61 (1)26.23 
			 2003 (3)63.20 (2)40.88 (1)26.14 
			 2004 (1)63.03 (1)42. 80 (1)27.30 
			 2005 (1)63.38 (1)44.61 (1)29.35 
			 (1 )October. (2) April. (3) November.  Notes: 1. NISRA population mid-year estimates have been used to calculate total number per 100,000 population. 2. Population mid-year estimate for 2004 was used for 2004 and 2005 calculation.  Source: Central Services Agency. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: GPs per 100,000 population in Northern Ireland by health board area in each of the last three years 
			  Number 
			   Eastern board  Northern board  Southern board  Western board 
			 November 2003 64.62 58.68 63.63 66.24 
			 October 2004 64.60 59.18 62.54 65.76 
			 October 2005 65.21 59.64 63.16 65.07 
			  Notes: 1. The number of GPs by board area is not available for 2001 and 2002. 2. NISRA population mid-year estimates have been used to calculate total number per 100,000 population. 3. Population mid-year estimate for 2004 was used for 2004 and 2005 calculation.  Source: Central Services Agency. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Dentists per 100,000 population in Northern Ireland by health board area in each of the last two years 
			  Number 
			   Eastern board  Northern board  Southern board  Western board 
			  October 
			 2004 48.8 44.0 44.5 40.5 
			 2005 50.6 44.7 48.2 41.9 
			  Notes: 1. The number of dentists by board area is not available for 2001, 2002 and 2003. Dentists can work in more than one board area, so may be counted more than once. 2. NISRA population mid-year estimates have been used to calculate total number per 100,000 population. 3. Population mid-year estimate for 2004 was used for 2004 and 2005 calculation.  Source: Central Services Agency.

Medical Services

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of  (a) GPs,  (b) dentists,  (c) optometrists and  (d) pharmacists were (i) male and (ii) female in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The information requested for general practitioners, dentists and optometrists is detailed in the following table. The information requested is not available for pharmacists.
	
		
			  Gender split of GPs, dentists and optometrists in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years 
			  Percentage 
			   GP  Dentists  Optometrists 
			   Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female 
			 2001 68 32 n/a n/a 46 54 
			 2002 66 34 n/a n/a 46 54 
			 2003 (1)66 (1)34 n/a n/a (2)49 (2)51 
			 2004 65 35 (1)58 (1)42 49 51 
			 2005 64 36 56 44 49 51 
			 n/a = Not available. (1) November. (2) July.  Notes: 1. The Central Services Agency does not hold this information on the number of pharmacists in Northern Ireland. 2. All figures are as at October unless otherwise indicated.  Source: Central Services Agency.

Medical Services

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of  (a) GPs,  (b) dentists,  (c) optometrists and  (d) pharmacists in Northern Ireland were (i) under 40, (ii) 40 to 54 and (iii) over 55 years in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The percentage of GPs (i) under 40, (ii) 40 to 54 and (iii) 55 and over for 2003, 2004 and 2005 is detailed in Table 1. This information is not available for 2001 and 2002.
	The percentage of dentists (i) under 40, (ii) 40 to 54 and (iii) 55 and over for 2004 and 2005 is detailed in Table 2. This information is not available for 2001, 2002 and 2003.
	The information requested for optometrists and pharmacists is not available.
	
		
			  Table 1: Percentage of GPs aged under 40, 40 to 54, and 55 and over in Northern Ireland in each of the last three years 
			   Under 40 (Percentage)  40 to 54 (Percentage)  55 and over (Percentage)  Total (Headcount) 
			 November 2003(1) 25.8 58.8 15.1 1,076 
			 October 2004 25.0 57.9 17.1 1,078 
			 October 2005 23.9 56.5 19.6 1,084 
			 (1 )0.3 per cent. unknown age group.  Note: The age of GPs is not available for 2001 and 2002.  Source: Central Services Agency. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Percentage of dentists aged under 40, 40 to 54, and 55 and over in Northern Ireland in each of the last two years 
			   Under 40 (Percentage)  40 to 54 (Percentage)  55 and over (Percentage)  Total (Headcount) 
			 2004 60.1 32.3 7.6 734 
			 2005 58.4 34.5 7.1 760 
			  Note: The age of dentists is not available for 2001, 2002 and 2003.   Source: Central Services Agency.

Medical Services

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total number of eye tests claimed for in Northern Ireland was in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of those who had eye tests subsequently received  (a) spectacles for the first time and  (b) replacement or repairs of spectacles.

Paul Goggins: Table 1 shows the total number of eye tests claimed for in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years. The percentage of those who had eye tests that subsequently received spectacles for the first time is not available, however we do know the total number of spectacle vouchers issued (Table 2). The percentage of those who had eye tests that subsequently received replacement or repair of spectacles is not available, however we do know the total number of repairs or replacements of spectacles in the last seven years. This information is provided in Table 3.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of Health Service Sight Tests 
			 1995-96 196,731 
			 1996-97 212,000 
			 1997-98 227,000 
			 1998-99 235,603 
			 1999-2000 305,148 
			 2000-01 306,503 
			 2001-02 325,998 
			 2002-03 333,928 
			 2003-04 345,966 
			 2004-05 346,925 
			  Notes: Health Service sight tests are restricted to certain groups of the population such as children and those with particular medical conditions. In addition, from 1 April 1999, patients aged 60 and over were eligible for Health Service sight tests.  Source:  Central Services Agency 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of Spectacle Vouchers Issued 
			 1995-96 146,113 
			 1996-97 153,000 
			 1997-98 159,000 
			 1998-99 158,520 
			 1999-2000 157,709 
			 2000-01 160,372 
			 2001-02 165,198 
			 2002-03 167,792 
			 2003-04 169,209 
			 2004-05 167,151 
			  Source: Central Services Agency 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Number of Replacements or Repairs of Glasses 
			 1998-99 31,659 
			 1999-2000 29,439 
			 2000-01 28,762 
			 2001-02 19,612 
			 2002-03 26,796 
			 2003-04 29,158 
			 2004-05 26,719 
			  Notes: Vouchers towards the cost of spectacles are restricted to particular categories of patients as are replacements or repairs to spectacles.  Source: Central Services Agency

Medical Services

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many  (a) general practitioners,  (b) dentists,  (c) optometrists and  (d) pharmacists there were in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The information requested for general practitioners, dentists, optometrists and the number of pharmacy contractors is detailed in the following table. The number of pharmacists is not available.
	
		
			  Total number of GPs, dentists, optometrists and pharmacy contractors in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years 
			   General practitioners  Dentists  Optometrists  Pharmacy contractors 
			 2001 1,061 (1)673 406 320 
			 2002 1,076 (1)689 445 297 
			 2003 (2)1,076 (1)696 445 284 
			 2004 1,078 732 490 282 
			 2005 1,084 760 511 267 
			 (1) April (2) November   Notes: 1. Central Services Agency does not hold information on the number of pharmacists in Northern Ireland. They hold information on the number of pharmacies and pharmaceutical contracts. 2. Figures are as at October unless otherwise indicated.  Source: Central Services Agency.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1180W, on the Northern Ireland Police Fund, whether the finances of the Northern Ireland Police Fund are subject to  (a) monthly,  (b) quarterly,  (c) six monthly and  (d) annual returns to his Department.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Police Fund is required to provide financial monitoring information on a monthly basis and after the end of each financial year to provide its audited accounts to the Department.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland who ordered the internal audit by his Department of the Northern Ireland Police Fund which followed the breach of security at the fund; whether they did so under instruction by a Government Minister; and whether the audit uncovered any  (a) systems failures and  (b) financial irregularities.

Paul Goggins: In respect of the alleged breach of security at the Northern Ireland Police Fund a full police investigation has been carried out within the fund. This investigation has now been completed and involved a comprehensive programme of interviews. No persons have been prosecuted as a result of this investigation. It would not be appropriate to comment on the operational detail of the investigation as such issues are a matter for the Chief Constable.
	The board of directors asked the NIO internal audit to complete a review of the Northern Ireland Police Fund. All matters relating to the report are a matter for the fund.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish in full the initial internal audit of the Northern Ireland Police Fund conducted by his Department after the 2003 breach of security at the fund.

Paul Goggins: In respect of the alleged breach of security at the Northern Ireland Police Fund a full police investigation has been carried out within the fund. This investigation has now been completed and involved a comprehensive programme of interviews. No persons have been prosecuted as a result of this investigation.
	The audit report referred to was requested by the Northern Ireland Police Fund. Any matters relating to the report are a matter for the fund.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the internal audit of the Northern Ireland Police Fund conducted by his Department after the 2003 breach of security at the fund was accepted by the Board of Directors of the fund; and whether a second audit was conducted.

Paul Goggins: The audit report referred to was requested by the Northern Ireland Police Fund. Any matters relating to the report are a matter for the fund.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the internal audit of the Northern Ireland Police Fund conducted by his Department after the 2003 breach of security at the fund was classed as restricted by any  (a) senior officer and  (b) member of staff of the fund.

Paul Goggins: The audit report referred to was requested by the Northern Ireland Police Fund. Any matters relating to the report are a matter for the fund.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the internal audit of the Northern Ireland Police Fund conducted by his Department after the 2003 breach of security at the fund was completed.

Paul Goggins: All matters relating to the internal audit report on the Northern Ireland Police Fund are a matter for the fund.

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1179W, on the Northern Ireland Police Fund, on what date  (a) Ms A. Paisley,  (b) Mrs. F. Reid,  (c) Lord Rogan,  (d) Mr. R. Wilson and  (e) Sir John Semple ceased to be directors of the Northern Ireland Police Fund.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Police Fund has advised me that the following Directors of the fund resigned with effect from the dates listed:
	
		
			  Director  Date of resignation 
			 Ms A. Paisley 3 March 2006 
			 Mrs. F. Reid 31 January 2005 
			 Lord Rogan 31 March 2005 
			 Mr. R. Wilson 31 March 2004 
			 Sir J. Semple 31 January 2005

Northern Ireland Police Fund

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1179W, on the Northern Ireland Police Fund, what percentage of staff at the fund are employed by his Department; and what that percentage was on 31 December 2003.

Paul Goggins: Currently 60 per cent. of the staff of the fund are seconded from the Northern Ireland Civil Service. At 31 December 2003 this figure was 12.5 per cent.

Paramilitary Paraphernalia

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been  (a) charged with and  (b) convicted of offences involving the (i) wearing and (ii) display of items associated with paramilitary organisations in Northern Ireland in each year since 2001; and how many related to (A) Loyalist and (B) Republican displays in each case.

Paul Goggins: The Police Service of Northern Ireland have confirmed that they have no records of anyone being charged with these offences since 2001.
	The NIO Statistics and Research branch have confirmed that they have no record of convictions for these offences between the years 2001 and 2003.
	Data that might detail convictions from 2004 to present time will not be available until late summer.

Police

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how frequently the list of organisations of which members of the Police Service Northern Ireland must notify the authorities of their membership is reviewed.

Paul Goggins: Section 51(2) of the Police (NI) Act 2000 provides the Chief Constable with the power to give guidance to officers on any membership which a police officer believes he has, or not, of an organisation which may be regarded as affecting that officer's ability to discharge his duties effectively and impartially. 1 am advised by the PSNI that all General Orders are reviewed on an annual basis and that during this annual review, the list of organisations will also be revisited. This review of the list of organisations will then be placed before the Chief Constable's Forum for final decision.

Police

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many police officers in Northern Ireland have been suspended from duty as a result of investigations by the policing ombudsman in each of the last three years.

Paul Goggins: The PSNI has advised that two police officers in Northern Ireland have been suspended from duty as a result of investigations by the Police Ombudsman in 2003 and three officers were suspended in 2004. No officers were suspended in 2005 or 2006 as of 7 July 2006.

Post Office Contracts

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for which services  (a) his Department and  (b) its associated public bodies hold contracts with the Post Office; and what the (i) start and (ii) termination date is of each contract.

David Hanson: The following table lists all current contracts with Post Office Ltd held by Northern Ireland Departments and their associated public bodies.
	
		
			  Department  Service  Start date  End date 
			 Livestock and Meat Commission for Northern Ireland (LMC): "Presstream" and "Mailsort" services for delivery of weekly LMC bulletin. 29 October 2006 Open ended (seven days notice by either party) 
			 Driver And Vehicle Licensing Northern Ireland Processing motor vehicle licensing renewals 1 April 2002 31 March 2007 
			 Social Security Agency Post Office card account (POCA) banking services 1 April 2003 31 March 2010

Rates

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what formula is used to calculate the average rate for households in Northern Ireland.

David Hanson: The average domestic rate for households in Northern Ireland consists of the average of the 26 district council domestic rates plus the domestic regional rate.
	The formula for calculation of the average rate for households is as follows: Each year, district councils' estimated net expenditure is reduced by anticipated general grant payments and any balance that councils have indicated they wish to apply, to determine the net amount to be raised from district rates. This figure is divided by the total penny product (the income from one penny in the rates) to give the average non-domestic rate. The average non-domestic rate is then multiplied by the Northern Ireland growth factor to determine the average domestic rate. The average domestic rate for 2006-2007 is 157.33 pence
	The regional domestic rate is a single rate applied uniformally across Northern Ireland. It is determined by dividing the domestic rate revenue required in the Budget by the domestic tax base, currently defined in rental values.
	The average domestic rate in 2006-07 is 355.50 pence, which is the sum of the uniform regional domestic rate of 198.17p and the average district rate of 157.33p.

Redundancy

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how redundancy packages are calculated for  (a) the Northern Ireland Office and  (b) Northern Ireland Police Fund staff.

Paul Goggins: All benefits payable on redundancy terms which apply to staff in the Northern Ireland Office who are members of the Home Civil Service are determined under the Civil Service Compensation Scheme.
	All benefits payable on redundancy terms which apply to staff in the Northern Ireland Office who are members of the Northern Ireland Civil Service are determined under the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (Northern Ireland).
	The terms and conditions for the employment of staff in the Northern Ireland Police Fund are a matter for the fund.

Road Improvements

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the major planned roadworks on the A2 between Limavady and Coleraine will  (a) begin and  (b) be concluded.

David Cairns: The acting chief executive of roads service Mr. Geoff Allister has written to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.
	 Letter from Geoff Allister, dated 17 July 2006:
	You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question about when the major planned roadworks on the A2 between Limavady and Coleraine will (a) begin and (b) be concluded. As this issue falls within my responsibility as Acting Chief Executive of Roads Service, I have been asked to reply.
	It is assumed that you are referring to the planned improvements for the A37, the main route between Limavady and Coleraine.
	Roads Service plans to carry out a major improvement scheme to provide a 2.3 kilometre long climbing lane to improve overtaking opportunities for Coleraine-bound traffic on the A37 west of Keady mountain.
	It was expected to commence construction work on this scheme during this financial year, however this has had to be deferred because of land acquisition difficulties. We are hopeful that construction will commence in 2007/2008.
	We are mindful of the elevation of the site and propose to programme the works to commence in the spring and be completed by the autumn to avoid the need to divert traffic onto other less suitable mountain roads during winter conditions.

Sectarian Attacks

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many sectarian attacks there were in each parliamentary constituency in Northern Ireland in each of the first four months of 2006.

Paul Goggins: The statistics have been split by police District Command Unit and have been provided for the months of Jan, Feb and Mar 2006-April 2006 statistics are not yet available.
	
		
			   Violent crimes  Non-violent crimes 
			   January 2006  February 2006  March 20006  January to March 2006  January 2006  February 2006  March 2006  January to March 2006 
			 Antrim 3 2 I 6 1 3 0 4 
			 Ards 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 4 
			 East Belfast 1 2 0 3 4 2 0 6 
			 North Belfast 12 7 4 23 6 3 2 11 
			 South Belfast 2 0 5 7 1 0 1 2 
			 West Belfast 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Carrickfergus 4 1 0 5 0 0 1 1 
			 Castlereagh 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 
			 Larne 3 0 0 3 3 1 0 4 
			 Lisburn 2 3 0 5 0 0 1 1 
			 Newtownabbey 3 2 4 9 2 2 1 5 
			 North Down 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Armagh 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 
			 Ballymena 7 5 1 13 3 3 1 7 
			 Ballymoney 2 0 0 2 0 0 1 1 
			 Banbridge 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 
			 Coleraine 3 2 0 5 5 1 2 8 
			 Cookstown 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Craigavon 0 10 1 11 0 3 1 4 
			 Down 0 0 1 1 1 2 0 3 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Fermanagh 1 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 
			 Foyle 6 4 1 11 9 4 18 31 
			 Limavady 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Magherafelt 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 
			 Moyle 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Sex Offenders

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many persons on the Sex Offenders Register in Northern Ireland have re-offended whilst on licence in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: Probation Board for Northern Ireland have responsibility for the post-release supervision of persons subject to life licences and sex offender licences. Of the 17 persons released in the last five years who are subject to a life licence or sex offender licence, and who are also subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, one person has been reconvicted.

Sex Offenders

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many persons on the Sex Offenders Register in Northern Ireland on licence have had their licence revoked in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: The Probation Board for Northern Ireland has responsibility for the post-release supervision of persons subject to life licences and sex offender licences. In the last five years, three offenders on sex offender licences who were also subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 were returned to prison for breach of licence conditions, two in 2001 and one in 2002. There have been no licences revoked in any of the last five years in respect of those subject to a life licence or sex offender licence who are also subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

Victims March (Dublin)

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1187W, on the Victims March (Dublin), what assurances he sought from Ministers of the Irish Republic  (a) about the safety of Northern Ireland citizens while in Dublin in the future and  (b) regarding the prosecution of people identified as being involved in the attacks upon citizens of Northern Ireland in Dublin on 25 February 2006.

Peter Hain: This was an unfortunate but isolated incident. I understand 41 people were arrested during the disorder that occurred on 25 February: the decision to prosecute is a matter for the Director of Public Prosecutions. The safety of Northern Ireland citizens, whether in Dublin or Belfast or anywhere else, remains paramount for me and of course I discussed this and keep in touch with Ministers of the Irish Republic.

Westminster Election (Expenditure)

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much was spent on the running of the 2001 Westminster election in Northern Ireland.

David Hanson: The spend in relation to the parliamentary general election held on 7 June 2001 in Northern Ireland was £1.65 million.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Abandoned Cars

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many abandoned cars were recorded in each local authority in England in each year since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: Numbers of abandoned vehicles for each local authority were primarily collected from 2000-01 to 2003-04 from the DEFRA Municipal Waste Management Survey and from WasteDataFlow in 2004-05. Results from authorities that responded have been placed in the Library of the House. Numbers were not collected prior to 2000-01 and results for 2005-06 are not yet available.

Air Quality

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will visit the London borough of Bexley to discuss air quality with residents.

Ben Bradshaw: There are no plans at present to visit the London borough of Bexley.

Carbon Islands

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research he has evaluated on carbon islands as a preventive measure for climate change.

Ian Pearson: I understand carbon islands to mean the production of biomass grown by hydroponics on artificial islands in tropical seas. My Department has not evaluated any research on this idea as a way to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Energy Efficiency

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what targets have been set for Government departments' consumption of  (a) gas,  (b) electricity and  (c) all power from renewable sources.

Ian Pearson: On 12 June the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced new sustainable operations targets for the Government estate. They replace the previous targets in the Framework for Sustainable Development on the Government Estate, and will drive improvements in the way Departments manage their land and buildings sustainably.
	These new commitments do not set a separate target for gas and electricity consumption on the Government estate. Instead Government have set targets on overall energy efficiency, carbon emissions and carbon neutrality, all of which will apply from April 2006. A table of the new targets follows as annex A. In addition, the existing commitment that Government Departments should source at least 10 per cent. of their electricity from renewables will remain in place until 2008.
	Departmental performance against Government estate targets, including carbon emissions and energy efficiency, has been published in annual Sustainable Development Government Reports. The last report was produced by the Sustainable Development Commission, the independent watchdog, in December 2005. It covered the reporting period April 2004 to March 2005 and is available at: http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/watchdog.
	
		
			  Annex A: Targets for sustainable operations on the Government estate( 1) 
			  Priority area  Targets 
			  Climate change and energy  
			 Carbon emissions from offices Reverse the current upward trend in carbon emissions by April 2007 
			  Reduce carbon emissions by 12.5 per cent. by 2010-11, relative to 1999-2000 levels 
			  Reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent. by 2020, relative to 1999-2000 levels 
			   
			 Carbon emissions from road vehicles Reduce carbon emissions from road vehicles used for Government administrative operations by 15 per cent. by 2010-11, relative to 2005-06 levels 
			   
			 Carbon neutral Central Government's office estate to be carbon neutral by 2012 
			   
			 Energy efficiency Departments to increase their energy efficiency per sq m by 15 per cent. by 2010, relative to 1999-2000 levels. 
			  Departments to increase their energy efficiency per sq m by 30 per cent. by 2020, relative to 1999-2000 levels 
			   
			  Sustainable consumption and production  
			 Waste arisings Departments to reduce their waste arisings by 5 per cent. by 2010, relative to 2004-05 levels 
			  Departments to reduce their waste arisings by 25 per cent. by 2020, relative to 2004-05 
			   
			 Recycling Departments to increase their recycling figures to 40 per cent. of their waste arisings by 2010 
			  Departments to increase their recycling figures to 75 per cent. of their waste arisings by 2020 
			   
			  Natural resource protection  
			 Biodiversity Departments to meet or exceed the aim of having 95 per cent. of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) in sole ownership or control in target condition by 2010 
			   
			 Water consumption Reduce water consumption by 25 per cent. on the office and non-office estate by 2020, relative to 2004-05 levels 
			  Reduce water consumption to an average of 3m(3) per person/year for all new office builds or major office refurbishments 
			   
			  Government to mandate Departments to adopt the Carbon Trust's Carbon Management Programme—involves the proactive management to the risks and opportunities relating to climate change mitigation 
			  The application of BRE's Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) excellent standards, or equivalent, to all new builds and major refurbishments 
			  Accepted elements from the Sustainable Procurement Task Force National Action Plan 
			  OGC's Property Benchmarking Scheme—aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of corporate estate management 
			  All Departments to have Environmental Management Systems based, or modelled upon, a recognised system 
			  Data collection and reporting—identification of core data to be reported against the new targets 
			  All Departments to encourage staff to take an active role in volunteering in the community 
			  All Departments to conduct sustainability appraisals of office relocations 
			   
			 Existing Sustainable Operational Commitments (to continue until completion) Departments to source at least 10 per cent. of electricity from renewables (31 March 2008) 
			  Departments to source at least 15 per cent. of electricity from Combined Heat and Power (2010) 
			 (1) Vision for the Government estate: A sustainably managed estate which is modern, resource efficient, with low energy buildings; well conserved and managed land; efficient use of space and ways of working; and where the principles of sustainable development are embedded into our working practices.  Note: The above sustainable operational targets to apply for the reporting period April 2006-March 2007

Environmental Directives

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) letters of warning,  (b) infringement notices and  (c) prosecutions have been instigated by the European Commission against his Department since May 1997 in relation to environmental directives, including failure to meet transposition dates; and what the circumstances were of each case.

Ian Pearson: DEFRA was created in June 2001. Between 1 June 2001 and 30 June 2006 the Department was the lead Department for 60 environmental infringement proceedings initiated by the European Commission. The following table lists these by year:
	
		
			   Number 
			 1 June to 31 December 2001 10 
			 2002 7 
			 2003 20 
			 2004 12 
			 2005 4 
			 2006 7 
		
	
	A member state can be infracted for a number of different reasons falling into the following categories: late transposition, poor transposition and implementation issues. The infraction procedure begins with an initial pre-litigation stage, during which the Commission issues first a letter of formal notice (article 226 letter).
	A list of all infringements, including environmental ones, initiated by the European Commission against the UK can be found on the European Commission website at:
	http://ec.europa.eu/community_law/eulaw/index_en.htm-infractions

Greenhouse Emissions

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what mechanisms exist to ensure the accuracy of  (a) national and  (b) international reporting of greenhouse gas emissions.

Ian Pearson: Annex I Parties to the Kyoto Protocol are required to submit Greenhouse Gas Inventories to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) every year. These inventories are compiled using methodologies devised by the International Panel on Climate Change and agreed by the UNFCCC. Once submitted, the inventories are scrutinised by international experts to ensure their completeness and accuracy.
	In the UK, inventory data are subject to an audited quality control and assurance programme. This ensures that the data sources are reliable and quality checked, that the choice of methodologies is transparent, and that data are consistent over time, complete, comparable, and assessed for uncertainties. When required, methodological changes are made to take account of new data sources, new guidance from the IPCC, relevant work by other international organisations, new research, or specific research programmes sponsored by DEFRA. Such improvements to the methodology are applied retrospectively to ensure a consistent time series of emissions.
	DEFRA periodically tests the accuracy of key source sector estimates in the national inventory by undertaking independent peer review. Reviews completed to date include carbon dioxide from fossil fuel combustion and agriculture. DEFRA also funds independent verification of the reliability of the emissions estimates by combining measurements of the concentrations of selected greenhouse gases at Mace Head in Ireland and a model of atmospheric transport developed by the Met Office.

Methyl Bromide

John Horam: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made in the UK towards the Montreal Protocol aim of phasing out the use of methyl bromide.

Ian Pearson: Under the Montreal Protocol, methyl bromide use was phased out in developed countries from 2005, except for quarantine and pre-shipment purposes, and critical uses agreed by the parties to the Protocol and (in the EU) licensed by the European Commission.
	In 2006, agreed UK critical uses amount to up to 33 tonnes. This shows a significant downward trend of less than half the previous amount licensed for 2005 (some 70 tonnes). 2006 is the last year that methyl bromide will be used by the agricultural sector in soil. UK nominations of 11 tonnes for critical uses in 2007 continue the downward trend.
	Methyl bromide is an ozone depleting substance and the Government's policy is to support further critical uses only where lack of availability would cause significant market disruption and there are no technical or economically feasible alternatives.

Methyl Bromide

John Horam: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department  (a) provides assistance for and  (b) promotes the development of alternatives to (i) sulphuric acid in the cultivation of potatoes and (ii) methyl bromide as a pesticide in agriculture.

Ian Pearson: The Department does not generally seek to find alternatives to specific uses of chemicals such as those listed, since this is a matter for the industry sectors concerned. However, it is funding a small number of projects, some jointly with industry, on the development of alternatives to methyl bromide, particularly in the horticulture sector.
	Additionally, our pesticides research and development programme includes alternative crop protection technologies projects which aim to support Government policy directed at the minimisation of conventional chemical pesticide use. DEFRA's Pesticides Safety Directorate administers a research budget of about £5.5 million per year, of which over £1 million is applied to support this objective.

Radioactive Waste

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter sent on 16 June 2006 to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on the future of Nirex and policy on the management of radioactive waste.

Ian Pearson: No. It is inappropriate to place private ministerial correspondence in the Library of the House.
	However, it might be helpful to explain and put into context the current role of Nirex in the management of radioactive waste.
	Responsibility for securing the safety of the public and the environment rests with the independent regulators—the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the environment agencies (the Environment Agency, EA, in England and Wales and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, SEPA, in Scotland).
	The nuclear operators are required to demonstrate to the regulators that the risks to the public and the environment from their activities, including the management of radioactive waste, are reduced as low as reasonably practicable. In support of their safety cases for the packaging and disposal of radioactive waste, the operators may seek advice from Nirex.
	Nirex is not a regulator. It is a company that is jointly owned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) that advises nuclear site operators on the preparation of the industry's safety case submissions to the regulators for the conditioning and packaging of waste.
	It is the independent regulators who take decisions on the acceptability of waste conditioning and packaging safety cases submitted to them. The environment agencies have teams that scrutinise Nirex's contribution to the safety case process. It is regulators who are responsible for applying and determining the statutory safety requirements of the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 and the Radioactive Substances Act 1993.
	The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is the strategic UK-wide body with responsibility for securing the clean-up and decommissioning of public sector nuclear liabilities and the treatment, storage, transportation and disposal of hazardous materials including radioactive waste. It is the owner of most of the UK's radioactive waste.
	The majority of Nirex's current funding—over 90 per cent.—comes from a contract with the NDA. The remainder comes through an agreement with the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The company also receives payment from nuclear site operators for supply of their waste conditioning and packaging advice.

Rights of Way

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many rights of way have been  (a) reopened and (b) established in (i) Southend-on-Sea, (ii) Essex and (iii) Hertfordshire in the last five years for which figures are available.

Barry Gardiner: Responsibility for improving the rights of way network, and ensuring that routes are properly recorded and maintained, rests with individual local highway authorities.
	Data on how many new routes have been re-opened and established is not collected centrally by DEFRA.

Rural Life

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his most recent assessment is of the rate of closure of  (a) village halls,  (b) village shops and  (c) rural pubs since 1980; and if he will make a statement.

Barry Gardiner: Information from Action for Communities in Rural England shows that, of the 9,000 village halls on Rural Community Council databases, just five are known to have closed in the past few years. The Department does not hold information on the rate of closure of village shops or rural pubs.
	The Government recognise that village halls, shops and pubs can all play a part in helping rural communities to thrive. That is why, among other things, we have extended mandatory rate relief at 50 per cent. to include sole village public houses, petrol stations and village food shops under the village shop scheme.

Special Protection Areas

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent guidance English Nature has published on  (a) mitigation and  (b) avoidance measures in relation to special protection areas; and what plans it has for publishing future guidance.

Barry Gardiner: English Nature has published a draft Thames Basin Heaths Delivery Plan. This is designed to provide a means of mitigating against the potential adverse effects of increased housing around the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area.
	The Government Office for the South East is working with English Nature to explore the practicalities and flexibilities in the delivery plan approach, and to provide advice to local authorities and developers.
	The delivery plan, along with other research evidence, will be considered at the Examination in Public of the South East Plan in November.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which civilian individuals on the ground are responsible for overseeing reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan.

Hilary Benn: Afghanistan is a sovereign nation which has an elected Parliament and President. The Government of Afghanistan are therefore the civilian body responsible for overseeing the reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan. The Afghanistan Compact signed at the London Conference in January 2006, commits the Government of Afghanistan to lead on the reconstruction process in Afghanistan over the next five years, with support from the international community. The Government's plans are described in the interim Afghan National Development Strategy (iANDS), also launched at the London Conference. The UN has a Special Representative of the Secretary General in Kabul (currently Tom Koenigs). It is the responsibility of this person to help co-ordinate the international community's efforts. He is the joint chair of the Joint Co-ordination Monitoring Body (JCMB) which helps to make sure progress is seen against the targets set in London.
	As far as DFID civilian staff are concerned, I refer the hon. Member for Mid Norfolk to the response I gave on 10 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1405W to the hon. Member for the Forest of Dean (Mr. Harper).

African Aid

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on progress in providing aid to Africa following the G8 Gleneagles Summit in 2005.

Hilary Benn: Important progress has been made since Gleneagles on delivering G8 commitments to support development in Africa. This includes an increase in international aid of around 25 per cent. between 2004 and 2005 to over $100 billion, putting us well on track to reach the target of $130 billion in global aid by 2010. Half of this extra money will go to Africa, so that by 2010 it will be receiving $50 billion a year—double the aid it received in 2004. DFID met its pledge to provide £1 billion in aid to Africa through its country programmes in 2005-06 and is on track to double its bilateral programme by 2010-11. The Gleneagles pledges represent a long-term agenda and the Government remain committed to ensuring that all 2005 promises are fully implemented.

Agency Staff

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what average hourly rate was paid by his Department to each employment agency for staff employed through agencies in 2005-06.

Gareth Thomas: DFID periodically engages temporary staff, both administrative and professional, through employment agencies. Only some information on agency hourly rates is held centrally; for those agencies who supply staff to DFID regularly. The average hourly rate for these agencies, who supply mainly junior administrative grades, is as follows:
	 Grade C2 - £7.30 Glasgow, Margaret Hodge Recruitment Agency £7.46 Glasgow, TempTeam
	 Grade C1 - £8.75 - Glasgow, Margaret Hodge Recruitment Agency £10.98 - London, Josephine Sammonds
	Other agencies are used on an ad hoc basis but information about these agencies is not held centrally and could be secured only at disproportionate cost.
	DFID will be joining an existing arrangement, set up by the Prison Service, this year and once this comes into force information will be more readily available.

Child Labour

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what work his Department is undertaking on  (a) reducing and  (b) preventing child labour in (i) Asia, (ii) Africa and (iii) Latin America.

Gareth Thomas: The UK is committed to the elimination of child labour wherever it occurs. DFID is funding projects worth more than 20 million around the world, which aim to address the plight of those children already in work as well as to prevent further child labour. Many of these projects also tackle the trafficking of children for work. In addition, many of DFID's broader poverty reduction programmes are also helping to get children out of work and into education and are protecting children from having to take on harmful jobs to survive.
	In Asia, DFID is supporting the work of the International Labour Organisation's (ILO) International Programme for the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC). For example, in India, DFID is currently providing over 2.5 million for their programme in the state of Andhra Pradesh. DFID is also providing nearly 9 million to the ILO's programme in the Greater Mekong Region to end trafficking of women and children for exploitative labour.
	In Africa, DFID is supporting many countries to provide free universal primary education. Many of the most vulnerable cannot afford school fees or seek work to pay for schooling. In Tanzania, DFID is providing 110 million this year for the implementation of the Government's national strategy for growth and poverty reduction. Child labour is a key challenge that this strategy seeks to address and free primary education is part of the response.
	In Latin America, support is focused on street children. In Brazil, Peru, and Central America, DFID has funded projects aimed at reducing the numbers of children living and working on the streets by providing them with realistic alternatives.

Child Labour

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with  (a) the UN and  (b) UK-based humanitarian charities about child labour in developing countries.

Gareth Thomas: The UK is in regular contact with both the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and UNICEF, the lead UN agencies working to eliminate child labour. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's recent discussions with these organisations have not focused specifically on child labour. DFID is a major funder of both organisations, with a current commitment of over 15 million to the ILO's programmes to combat child labour and the trafficking of children. DFID also provided 19 million in core funding to UNICEF programmes in 2005, including support to their Child Protection programme.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development regularly holds meetings with UK-based non-governmental organisations (NGOs) which often have issues relating to child labour on their agenda. However there has been no specific discussion of child labour in recent meetings. DFID funds a number of UK-based NGOs, including Save the Children Fund (SCF) and World Vision, to implement projects addressing child labour issues, including trafficking and street children.

Child Labour

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations his Department is making on reducing the need for child labour.

Gareth Thomas: DFID's overarching mission is to address extreme poverty which is the underlying cause of most child labour. DFID supports many activities which will enable children and families to survive without depending on income from child labour.
	In the White Paper published last week, the Government restate their commitment to the elimination of child labour and the development of social protection measures to ensure that poor families and vulnerable children do not need to depend on child labour.
	A number of DFID programmes already support social protection. For example, DFID is supporting the development of the Ghana Social Protection Strategy. One of the flagship projects of this strategy is the provision of cash payments to families living in chronic poverty, some of whom currently depend on their children's income. In Zimbabwe, DFID is providing 30 million to the Protracted Relief Programme which is supporting food security for 1.5 million households in extreme poverty and will mean that many children, including those orphaned by AIDS, will not have to undertake harmful work to survive.

Child Labour

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate his Department has made of the extent of child labour in  (a) Mexico,  (b) Belize,  (c) Argentina,  (d) Bolivia,  (e) Brazil,  (f) Chile,  (g) Columbia,  (h) Cuba,  (i) Ecuador,  (j) El Salvdor,  (k) Guatemala,  (l) Guyana,  (m) Haiti,  (n) Honduras,  (o) Nicaragua,  (p) Panama,  (q) Paraguay,  (r) Peru,  (s) Surinam,  (t) Uruguay and  (u) Venezuela; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: DFID uses data from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and UNICEF to estimate the extent of child labour. Between 2000 and 2004, the number of children at work in Latin America and the Caribbean fell by two thirds. Just over 5 per cent. of children in the region are now working. According to the ILO, the levels of child labour in Latin America and the Caribbean are now similar to those of some developed and transition economy countries.
	The datasets on child labour available from the ILO and UNICEF differ and are not available for all countries. The Statistical Information and Monitoring Programme from the ILO collate estimates on the number of working children based on national survey data. UNICEF estimates the percentage of children (aged five to 14) who are in child labour.
	The data available for the countries requested are as follows:
	
		
			   Data 
			 Mexico According to UNICEF, 16 per cent. of children aged 5 to 14 are involved in child labour. No data are available from the ILO 
			 Belize According to the ILO, 9,000 children between 5 and 17 years are working. No data are available from UNICEF 
			 Argentina No data available from either the ILO or UNICEF 
			 Bolivia According to the ILO there are 313,000 children between the ages of 7 and 17 in work. UNICEF estimates that 21 per cent. of children between the ages of 5 and 14 are working 
			 Brazil According to the ILO, there are 2.2 million child workers in Brazil. UNICEF estimates that 7 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour 
			 Chile According to the ILO there are 196,104 working children between the ages of 5 and 17 in Chile. This figure represents approximately 5 per cent. of children. No data from UNICEF available 
			 Colombia According to the ILO, there are 1.5 million working children between the ages of 5 and 17 in Colombia. UNICEF estimates that 5 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour 
			 Cuba No data from available from the ILO or UNICEF 
			 Ecuador UNICEF estimates that 6 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour. No recent ILO data available 
			 El Salvador According to the ILO, there are 222,000 working children between the ages of 5 and 17. No data from UNICEF available 
			 Guatemala According to the ILO, there are 938,000 working children between the ages of 5 and 17. UNICEF estimates that 24 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour 
			 Guyana UNICEF estimates that 19 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour. No data available from the ILO 
			 Haiti No data from either the ILO or UNICEF available 
			 Honduras According to the ILO, there are 356,000 working children between the ages of 5 and 17. No data from UNICEF available 
			 Nicaragua According to the ILO, there are 253,000 working children between the ages of 5 and 17. UNICEF estimates that 10 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour 
			 Panama According to the ILO, there are 48,000 working children between the ages of 5 and 17. No data from UNICEF available 
			 Paraguay UNICEF estimates that 8 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour. No data available from the ILO 
			 Peru No data from UNICEF or the ILO available 
			 Surinam No data from UNICEF or the ILO available 
			 Uruguay No data from UNICEF or the ILO available 
			 Venezuela UNICEF estimates that 7 per cent. of children aged between 5 and 14 are involved in child labour

Clean Water

David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to improve access to clean water and sanitation in the developing world.

Hilary Benn: I refer the hon. Member for Bosworth to the response I gave on 10 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1406W.

Comprehensive Spending Review

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with the  (a) Treasury and  (b) Cabinet Office regarding the pre-comprehensive spending review report; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: I have had, and will continue to have, regular discussions with the Chief Secretary about preparations for the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review, as a matter of great importance to the Department for International Development's medium and long term planning.

Departmental Staff (Sickness Absence)

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2006,  Official Report, column 768W, on departmental staff, why no record is maintained of the number of periods of sick absence by staff of less than five days.

Gareth Thomas: Since October 2004, when an electronic absence recording system was introduced, records of sick absences have been held centrally by DFID. This has afforded better management control of frequent and long-term sick absences. However, we are still in the process of defining the types of reports we will require on a regular basis. To provide the information in the format requested requires intensive manual manipulation of the data. We have also changed the basis of recording working patterns from days to hours, which compounds the problem of producing ad hoc reports. We are working with an external consultant towards implementing a simpler process for extracting information from existing systems, but we are unlikely to be able to produce the data until later this year.

Departmental Travel Costs

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his Answer of 10 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1408W, on departmental travel costs, 
	(1)  what the average cost of flights was in each month; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps his Department is taking to reduce the  (a) cost and  (b) number of internal flights for his staff; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what the total cost was of these flights in 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: The average cost of flights in each month in 2005 was as follows:
	
		
			   Average cost () 
			 January 215.84 
			 February 222.83 
			 March 203.66 
			 April 241.70 
			 May 242.61 
			 June 231.66 
			 July 207.54 
			 August 227.53 
			 September 218.33 
			 October 239.41 
			 November 224.88 
			 December 122.87 
		
	
	DFID's domestic travel policies ensure that staff travel only when necessary, to minimise cost and environmental impact from carbon emissions. Only top management staff may buy business class tickets. However, DFID benefits from an arrangement used by a number of Government Departments whereby travellers on flexible economy tickets may be upgraded to business class at no extra cost. We are keen to reduce the number of internal flights and time spent travelling. We instruct staff to consider whether meetings are essential, and we have invested in modern communication systems, including video conference facilities, to reduce the need for travel.

Disability Policy

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to implement its public sector duty in respect of disability policy; and what steps are taken to include  (a) disabled people and  (b) their representative organisations in this process.

Gareth Thomas: DFID has started its preparations for the implementation of the Disability Equality Duty, which comes into effect on 1 December 2006. We are currently developing a DFID-specific equalities screening tool, and an equalities impact assessment tool, to allow for the effective identification and assessment of policies and functions relevant to the Disability Equality Duty.
	We will shortly be mapping out our Disability Equality Scheme and preparing our Disability Action Plan. At this stage we will involve disabled people's organisations as well as development organisations with a disability focusboth in the UK and in our partner countries.
	DFID is already taking a number of steps to address disability issues in its approach to development. For example, DFID commissioned a Disability Knowledge and Research programme, and we have since been adopting a twin track approach to disability research. This involves mainstreaming disability into existing research initiatives and working directly towards the establishment of an emancipatory model of research with an umbrella Disabled Peoples' Organisation in Southern Africa.
	DFID is also consulting disabled people's organisations, and development organisations with a disability remit, about the development of a good practice note for its staff on Inclusive Development. This will have a strong focus on the involvement of disabled people and their representatives in partner countries to ensure that disability issues are taken into account across DFID's programmes.

Disabled Children

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  how much his Department has allocated to ensure that children with disabilities in developing countries receive an education in each of the last five years; and how much he plans to allocate for this purpose over the next three years;
	(2)  how much his Department has spent on ensuring schools in developing countries have adequate facilities to meet the needs of children with disabilities in each of the last three years.

Hilary Benn: DFID has committed some 2 billion to education over the last 10 years. In April, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pledged to increase this sum to 8.5 billion over the next 10 years, and last month the Prime Minister promised to increase DFID's annual budget for education to 1 billion a year by 2010.
	Most of this funding will be channelled to the Governments of developing countries to invest in long term, comprehensive investment plans for the education sector. We will be working with our partners to ensure that access to education by children with disabilities is part of these plans. For example, in India, DFID has supported the District Primary Education Programme, which promotes inclusive education and has helped states integrate disabled children into mainstream schools.
	We will also continue to fund discrete civil society projects focused on children with disabilities. DFID has partnership agreements with a number of organisations that support disability-focused activities, such as World Vision, HelpAge International, Save the Children and VSO, among others. In addition, through our partner Action on Disability and Development, with whom we have a six-year Programme Partnership Agreement, we work to promote greater participation and inclusion of disabled people and their organisations in decision-making processes, particularly on partner Governments' Poverty Reduction Strategies.

Disabled Children

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the percentage of children with disabilities in developing countries who receive an education.

Hilary Benn: The Global Monitoring Report, which we regard as the most reliable source of education data, estimates that only 2 per cent. of children with disabilities in developing countries are enrolled in school. Civil society organisations working in this field make similar estimates.
	All children, including those with disabilities or living in difficult circumstances, should have equal access to a good-quality basic education. DFID is committed to working with the Governments of developing countries towards the education of all children, including those with disabilities.
	DFID's policy paper, 'Reducing poverty by tackling social exclusion', which has been deposited in the Libraries of the House, sets out our broad-based approach to tackling social exclusion across all sectors. The paper outlines how DFID will build on the work that is already under way and some practical actions that DFID is taking to tackle social exclusion and make a real difference to the lives of excluded people.

EU Economic Partnership Agreements

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effect on UK international development strategies of EU Economic Partnership Agreements.

Hilary Benn: The negotiations on Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries are continuing and are due to be finalised by the end of 2007.
	Based on our strategy on development and trade as outlined in the Trade and Investment White Paper 2004 (in which we supported improved trade opportunities for developing countries in line with their broader development strategies), the Government have responded to the EPA negotiations. We published a policy statement in March 2005 on how we think EPAs should be designed if they are to help the ACP countries develop. This policy determines how we will influence the EPA negotiations and assess their outcome.
	Secondly, at ACP countries' request, DFID has provided substantial financial and independent technical assistance to help inform their positions in the negotiations. This includes support for the west African, eastern and southern African and Caribbean countries as well to the regional bodies which negotiate on their behalf. The UK is the largest bilateral donor in the EU providing such assistance for EPAs.
	Thirdly, UK international development assistance will also respond to the needs and priorities of the ACP arising from EPAs in order to help them develop their ability to trade. DFID will provide funding through the European Development Fund. Support for developing countries, including the ACP, will also be provided through our own bilateral initiative, Aid for Trade, to which we have committed 100 million per year by 2010.

Fast Track Initiative

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development in what ways his Department is supporting the Fast Track Initiative for education in developing countries.

Hilary Benn: The UK is supporting the Fast Track Initiative (FTI) as part of our overall approach to speeding up progress towards primary education for all children by 2015. Earlier this year, I announced an additional UK contribution of 100 million to the FTI Catalytic Fund, bringing our total support to 150 million. Our contribution over the next two years will cover nearly a quarter of the funding gap in the FTI.
	In addition, the UK is calling for other donors, especially G8 countries, to increase their support for an expanded FTI. We have urged other G8 countries to increase their support to education within the FTI framework, either directly through the FTI Catalytic Fund or by increasing their support for education in FTI endorsed countries.

Health Services

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent on health services development in developing countries in each year since 1997, broken down by country.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 3 July 2006
	I attach details of our bilateral general health sector spend by country for the financial years 1997-98 to 2004-05. This totalled nearly 267 million in the financial year 2004-05. We are still in the process of validating expenditure data for 2005-06 and cannot release this under National Statistics Protocols.
	DFID also supports work to improve health through our regional and central programmes (including research programmes) that complement the work of our country programmes. In 2004-05, this additional support brought our total bilateral spend on the health sector to some 363 million.
	In addition, we provide funding to UN agencies such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and UNICEF, and bodies such as the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria, which are all primarily concerned with helping countries improve their health services. In 2004-05, expenditure on multilateral organisations that have a significant focus on health was 108.6 million.
	DFID also provides general Poverty Reduction Budget Support to several developing countries to help build basic services. Some of this funding goes on health services, but is not captured within our sector specific spending figures which therefore somewhat underestimate our overall contribution to improving health in developing countries.
	
		
			  DFID bilateral spend on health 1997-98 to 2004-05 
			  GBP  
			  Country  1997-98  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02 
			 Afghanistan 200,000  132,167   
			 Albania 38,930 188,398 151,338 107,814 296,881 
			 Algeria 4,362 
			 Angola 1,274,663 963,376 617,035 257,381 29,829 
			 Anguilla 8,201 77,665 111,147 83,808 248,543 
			 Antigua and Barbuda 118 33,787 576,013 529,333  
			 Armenia, Republic of  8,612 110,163 100,000  
			 Azerbaijan, Republic of 12,926  40,000 40,000  
			 Bahamas  
			 Bangladesh 7,864,076 10,576,683 12,146,258 18,203,254 16,794,134 
			 Barbados 11,755 3,332
			 Belarus, Republic of  4,800 4,772 14,552 15,185 
			 Benin, Peoples Republic  87,952 81,647 8,316  
			 Bolivia 604,453 808,630 1,333,854 2,300,908 3,188,656 
			 Bosnia 245,320 427,928 613,522 243,557 77,457 
			 Botswana 16,394 27,960 32,307 18,155 14,269 
			 Brazil 812,485 625,719 754,713 746,557 1,192,809 
			 Bulgaria 52,473 
			 Burkina Faso 84,602 134,980 70,775 25,371 29,986 
			 Burma 17,379 262,095 175,915 99,252 4,144 
			 Burundi  
			 Cambodia 2,306,696 2,485,202 2,116,258 1,899,004 1,718,249 
			 Cameroon 18,946 34,690 70,296 12,871  
			 Caribbean 109,216 136,977 254,216 74,452 415,141 
			 Chile 164,374 322,899 145,625   
			 China 144,798 471,529 1,895,663 2,681,681 3,784,647 
			 Colombia 14,753 69,324 61,014 43,703 4,405 
			 Congo, Dem Republic 41,278 52,545 141,460 49,721  
			 Congo, Peoples Republic 23,005 6,018 23,540   
			 Croatia 15,952 42,657 84,418 5,863 6,719 
			 Cuba 111,401 66,634 49,094 87,480 49,038 
			 Cyprus   538   
			 Dominican Republic 17 
			 Ecuador 76,096 90,242 26,179 114,481 82,837 
			 Egypt, Arab Republic 10,559 
			 El Salvador 49,340 107,371 75,788 115,745 97,469 
			 Eritrea  
			 Estonia 342 
			 Ethiopia 444,264 267,151 241,957 212,408 9,326 
			 Fiji 88,705   194  
			 Gambia, The 298,553 318,524 99,034 183,185 276,647 
			 Georgia 110,081 134,189 183,697 293,871 615,553 
			 Ghana 3,533,964 9,941,984 6,165,425 8,570,308 11,414,003 
			 Guatemala 143,502 96,000 96,400 37,933 54,159 
			 Guinea   64,825 68,648 31,501 
			 Guyana 183,345 131,930 61,102 17,432 3,653 
			 Haiti21,530 71,951 
			 Honduras   126,802 152,961 122,604 
			 Hong Kong 5,325 809
			 Hungary 4,463 24,679 61,873 90,540 114,898 
			 India 21,351,855 20,295,078 35,486,879 30,586,585 29,560,090 
			 Indonesia 11 164,453 32,583 38,198 118 
			 Iraq 368,000  530,582   
			 Jamaica  
			 Kazakhstan, Republic of 453,362 270,565 258,822 420,692 322,795 
			 Kenya 4,372,218 9,884,658 7,524,589 8,008,104 9,151,998 
			 Kyrgyzstan, Republic of 99,412 157,066 341,676 550,017 446,835 
			 Laos 222,058 192,878 61,896 68,893 66,758 
			 Lesotho 233,911 142,080 220,406 129,886 74,000 
			 Liberia  173,244 393,721 1,136,057 362,107 
			 Madagascar  
			 Malawi 4,857,793 3,392,773 6,995,995 11,888,179 6,892,694 
			 Malaysia 3,250,000  25,016 26,877 17,626 
			 Mali 92,986 30,194 38,609 24,565 79,536 
			 Malta 18,045 20,972 20,785 15,170 1,695 
			 Mauritius 42,149 22,884 18,338 4,815  
			 Mexico 182,452 413,926 310,896 142,357 55,709 
			 Middle East 29,847 40,863 32,134 32,294  
			 Moldova, Republic of 7,524 2,653   11,960 
			 Montserrat 11,008,453 8,950,343 8,770,595 4,117,418 644,272 
			 Mozambique 596,329 547,725 613,395 8,119,134 8,640,202 
			 Namibia 693,694 329,226 316,170 577,113 410,039 
			 Nepal 1,666,631 2,582,387 2,038,442 3,646,826 7,256,920 
			 Nicaragua 350,661 214,310 365,931 228,749 89,580 
			 Niger 60,000 89,842 100,000 100,000 78,210 
			 Nigeria 4,310,965 6,244,925 7,125,469 6,844,552 7,507,481 
			 Pakistan 6,451,560 5,952,187 7,373,423 4,074,751 10,318,693 
			 Panama   18,255 1,473  
			 Papua New Guinea 44,066 30,933 17,886   
			 Peru 1,680,287 1,526,543 2,061,625 1,594,336 1,509,490 
			 Philippines 144,448 115,038 37,099 19,516  
			 Pitcairn Islands  
			 Romania 140,937 193,566 66,804 29,882 217,949 
			 Russian Federation 2,777,722 2,305,030 2,876,347 2,214,351 2,107,051 
			 Rwanda   261,679 34,223 23,364 
			 Senegal 23,470  44,806 118,988 147,442 
			 Serbia and Montenegro213,495 1,021,768 
			 Sierra Leone 74,752 743,429 1,397,690 1,332,327 1,378,128 
			 Slovak Republic 16,730 
			 Slovenia 1,501 
			 Solomon Islands 183,715 55,347 34,520 7,658 3,074 
			 Somali Democratic Republic  27,601 43,203 52,351 5,678 
			 South Africa, Republic of 3,946,036 6,026,802 4,594,120 5,965,406 3,573,262 
			 Sri Lanka 331,939 452,821 447,962 200,849 182,181 
			 St. Helena 578,808 492,616 478,522 355,793 852,514 
			 St. Lucia 248 
			 Sudan 27,883 151,609 107,182 140,092 143,580 
			 Swaziland 118,817 70,063 84,722 151,867 94,240 
			 Tajikistan, Republic of  10,409 20,000 60,396 30,780 
			 Tanzania 5,898,613 5,462,371 6,391,140 9,337,450 12,508,228 
			 Thailand 24,645 44,859 4,206   
			 Togo 80,207 124,147 114,375 172,767 47,285 
			 Tonga 12,430 14,290 5,570  5,337 
			 Trinidad and Tobago 4,251 
			 Tristan da Cunha 291,625 123,387 149,457 112,520 184,852 
			 Turkmenistan 48,597 100,047 30,000 30,747  
			 Turks and Caicos Islands 48 13,791 132,818 89,684 10,317 
			 Uganda 8,676,854 8,537,985 9,160,803 54,019,083 38,711,758 
			 Ukraine 62,533 18,931 209,095 112,379 52,141 
			 Uzbekistan, Republic of 33,449 93,772 248,572 262,906 254,740 
			 Vanuatu 10,223 
			 Vietnam 152,383 190,173 229,208 58,350 82,746 
			 West Bank and Gaza 368,541 543,481 1,515,131 1,916,678 1,751,244 
			 Windward Islands  17,686
			 Yemen, Republic of(1)  
			 Yugoslavia 43,070  5,350,846 1,187,375 300,000 
			 Zambia 4,432,521 3,607,646 3,498,394 4,949,194 813,859 
			 Zimbabwe 3,867,411 2,791,817 3,500,968 4,267,535 3,219,267 
			   
			 Totals 107,455,315 123,034,688 151,126,188 207,303,175 191,996,756 
		
	
	
		
			  Country  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  1997-2005 Total 
			 Afghanistan 71,913 160,023 63,657 627,760 
			 Albania 405,235 417,831 271,459 1,877,886 
			 Algeria4,362 
			 Angola  34,800 422,970 3,600,054 
			 Anguilla 44,963 23,195 214,569 812,092 
			 Antigua and Barbuda 131,928   1,271,179 
			 Armenia, Republic of218,775 
			 Azerbaijan, Republic of92,926 
			 Bahamas 3,034 912  3,946 
			 Bangladesh 16,356,777 11,576,883 7,120,246 100,638,311 
			 Barbados15,087 
			 Belarus, Republic of 6,000 33,423 97,646 176,378 
			 Benin, Peoples Republic  54,426  232,341 
			 Bolivia 2,553,235 1,206,039 898,533 12,894,310 
			 Bosnia1,607,785 
			 Botswana 8,543   117,627 
			 Brazil 1,734,181 1,212,617 879,439 7,958,519 
			 Bulgaria52,473 
			 Burkina Faso 30,095 16,051  391,860 
			 Burma 3,581,449 2,868,746 4,154,258 11,163,239 
			 Burundi 
			 Cambodia 1,520,188 4,370,537 5,821,983 22,238,116 
			 Cameroon136,803 
			 Caribbean 166,757 478,902 1,008,116 2,643,776 
			 Chile632,899 
			 China 11,962,737 9,151,283 9,156,735 39,249,073 
			 Colombia 2,238   195,437 
			 Congo, Democratic Republic 274,251 2,317,507 5,815,521 8,692,283 
			 Congo, Peoples Republic52,563 
			 Croatia 115,872 18,128  289,610 
			 Cuba 65,160 66,204 37,522 532,532 
			 Cyprus538 
			 Dominican Republic17 
			 Ecuador 84,722   474,557 
			 Egypt, Arab Republic10,559 
			 El Salvador 150,942 84,448 2,507 683,610 
			 Eritrea  500,000  500,000 
			 Estonia342 
			 Ethiopia 62,789 3,905,402 3,901,535 9,044,831 
			 Fiji88,900 
			 Gambia, The 40,035 1,661  1,217,640 
			 Georgia 265,309 605,622 776,229 2,984,551 
			 Ghana 7,524,897 11,727,091 14,599,713 73,477,385 
			 Guatemala 73,490 65,738 14,354 581,575 
			 Guinea 311,251 59,835  536,060 
			 Guyana397,462 
			 Haiti 81,669 73,699  248,849 
			 Honduras 72,352   474,719 
			 Hong Kong6,134 
			 Hungary 94,053   390,506 
			 India 33,811,687 35,883,728 74,895,144 281,871,047 
			 Indonesia 2,310  75,932 313,606 
			 Iraq898,582 
			 Jamaica 12,239 730  12,969 
			 Kazakhstan, Republic of 259,405 147,270  2,132,910 
			 Kenya 15,139,169 10,417,915 17,665,328 82,163,979 
			 Kyrgyzstan, Republic of 273,549 329,441 524,263 2,722,258 
			 Laos 86,795 37,784  737,062 
			 Lesotho   339,516 1,139,800 
			 Liberia 37,893 586,419 836,521 3,525,962 
			 Madagascar 54,435 119,296  173,731 
			 Malawi 13,090,485 14,780,123 12,544,271 74,442,313 
			 Malaysia 6,551   3,173,930 
			 Mali 24,716 138,485  429,091 
			 Malta 15,457 3,250  95,375 
			 Mauritius88,186 
			 Mexico 50,630 70,791 64,251 1,291,012 
			 Middle East135,138 
			 Moldova, Republic of  60,284 92,116 174,537 
			 Montserrat 814,059 229,599 11,121 34,545,859 
			 Mozambique 7,726,032 9,990,827 9,565,394 45,799,038 
			 Namibia 627,655 87,383  3,041,279 
			 Nepal 5,748,756 4,816,752 5,506,638 33,263,351 
			 Nicaragua 106,830 64,161 154,061 1,574,282 
			 Niger 21,790   449,842 
			 Nigeria 13,342,712 14,220,421 19,100,411 78,696,937 
			 Pakistan 5,710,661 19,763,895 18,454,129 78,099,299 
			 Panama19,728 
			 Papua New Guinea92,885 
			 Peru 191,750 224,531 831,523 9,620,084 
			 Philippines   81,604 397,705 
			 Pitcairn Islands   9,063 9,063 
			 Romania 263,865 187,055 86,563 1,186,620 
			 Russian Federation 5,520,263 5,746,922 2,819,130 26,366,816 
			 Rwanda 64,812 77,876 491,604 953,558 
			 Senegal 191,527 176,902 52,878 756,013 
			 Serbia and Montenegro 395,037 20,498  1,650,797 
			 Sierra Leone 1,470,743 2,474,677 410,592 9,282,338 
			 Slovak Republic16,730 
			 Slovenia1,501 
			 Solomon Islands 70   284,385 
			 Somali Democratic Republic 60,738 373,584 791,006 1,354,161 
			 South Africa, Republic of 4,962,862 5,849,554 6,881,227 41,799,268 
			 Sri Lanka 426,346 73,538 26,646 2,142,284 
			 St. Helena 681,089 1,061,986 983,638 5,484,965 
			 St. Lucia248 
			 Sudan 24,377 2,364,000 6,989,879 9,948,602 
			 Swaziland 68,483 11,516  599,707 
			 Tajikistan, Republic of 51,429 18,805  191,819 
			 Tanzania 12,893,487 6,082,347 1,835,021 60,408,657 
			 Thailand73,709 
			 Togo 219,672 196,555 36,626 991,634 
			 Tonga 12,928   50,555 
			 Trinidad and Tobago4,251 
			 Tristan da Cunha 163,781 12,029  1,037,651 
			 Turkmenistan 743   210,133 
			 Turks and Caicos Islands 8,882   255,539 
			 Uganda 20,107,168 31,750,624 3,124,761 174,089,035 
			 Ukraine 62,246 127,796 148,266 793,387 
			 Uzbekistan, Republic of 334,191 558,484 72,524 1,858,637 
			 Vanuatu10,223 
			 Vietnam 46,678 775,742 2,061,950 3,597,230 
			 West Bank and Gaza 1,900,907 2,192,092 1,086,903 11,274,976 
			 Windward Islands17,686 
			 Yemen, Republic of(1)  485,900 220,850 706,750 
			 Yugoslavia  36,534 488,240 7,406,064 
			 Zambia 9,824,217 6,610,710 4,692,756 38,429,297 
			 Zimbabwe 5,593,554 9,961,352 17,624,652 50,826,556 
			  
			 Totals 210,301,723 240,231,163 266,933,990  
			 (1) YAR to May 1990.   Note: Date 29 June 2006.  Source: SRSG database DFID Bilateral and Broad Sector.

Inclusive Education

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development in what ways his Department is supporting  (a) inclusive education and  (b) inclusive education in teacher training in developing countries.

Hilary Benn: DFID is committed to inclusive education and teacher training related to this, being part of education sector investment plans. In addition, DFID provides targeted support; for example in Vietnam, DFID has co-financed with the Government of Vietnam, the World Bank and other donors the Primary Education for Disadvantaged Children programme, a 243 million project which was launched in October 2003 and includes a strong focus on inclusive education. In Kenya, DFID is supporting an innovative pilot project with Sightsavers and the Ministry of Education to provide assistive technology to all totally blind and severe low-vision students at Kenyatta University and three Teacher Training Colleagues.

Iraq

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate he has made of the number of internally displaced people in Iraq.

Hilary Benn: The International Organization for Migration (IOM) published figures in June 2006, which give an overall estimate of 1.3 million people internally displaced in Iraq.
	Of these, the IOM believes that nearly 100,000 people have been displaced in Iraq's central and southern governorates since the bombing of the shrine at Samara on 22 February.
	The IOM add that numbers are estimates only and are continually changing. More information and updates are available on the IOM website (http://www.iom.int).
	Since the 2003 conflict, DFID has provided 85 million humanitarian assistance for Iraq, to help avert a major humanitarian crisis and to assist in the restoration of essential services. DFID has also contributed 32 million to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent movement in Iraq, and provided 7.2 million to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for humanitarian work, including work to assist displaced people.

Iraq

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the availability of medicine in hospitals in Iraq.

Hilary Benn: In 2003, following increasing concerns regarding drug shortages in Iraq, the World Health Organisation (WHO) set up a task force to look at of the problem.
	Since then WHO has been working with the Ministry of Health in Iraq to improve drug supply systems. In addition to training staff, WHO is working with Iraqis to build new systems, monitor and plan the supply of essential drugs, establish quality control, and assist emergency planning. This has included direct supply of some essential medicines to Iraq.
	Shortages remain and WHO advises that the national drug supply management system is still in need of technical and logistical assistance.
	DFID has given most of its assistance to the Iraqi health sector through financial contributions to international organisations, including WHO, that have particular expertise in health. These contributions include:
	5 million to WHO, which has helped to fund the delivery of emergency medical supplies, supported clinics and hospitals in Baghdad and Basra, and supports the Iraqi Government's Health Sector Working Group. More information can be found at: http://www.who.int/en
	32 million to the International Red Cross for immediate humanitarian assistance
	70 million to the United Nations and World Bank multi-donor trust funds for Iraq. These trust funds finance reconstruction in a number of areas including health. The UN trust fund has approved 10 health and nutrition projects, in total valued at $96 million. The World Bank trust fund also has a $25 million health rehabilitation project which finances priority emergency services, including basic medical equipment and essential drugs. More information on both trust funds can be found at: http://www.irffi.org

Kosovo and Somalia (Aid)

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid his Department  (a) has given in each of the last three financial years and  (b) plans to give in each of the next three financial years to (i) Kosovo and (ii) Somalia; and what percentage (A) was and (B) is planned to be allocated (1) as bilateral aid, (2) as multilateral aid via the EU, (3) as multilateral aid via the UN, (4) as multilateral aid via Bretton Woods institutions and (5) through non-governmental organisations and other voluntary and charity sector organisations.

Gareth Thomas: In the three financial years from 2002-03, DFID spent 3.1 million, 2.5 million and 2.12 million in Kosovo, all on technical assistance. Our allocation for 2005-06 was 2.7 million. Expenditure figures are being finalised. We intend to provide approximately 3 million in 2006-07 and expect this level to continue for the next two financial years. Virtually all EC support to Kosovo is given through the European Agency for Reconstruction which provided 63 million in 2003, 73 million in 2004 and 77 million in 2005. The UK's share of this assistance is 19 per cent. Data for future years are not available. We do not have disaggregated data for expenditure on Kosovo by UN agencies and the World Bank.
	DFID's programme of funding for Somalia for the last three financial years and by percentage is set out in the following table. Official figures for the financial year 2005-06 have yet to be published but the allocation was provisionally 13.2 million. Planned programme allocations for the next two financial years' are as follows:
	
		
			million 
			 2006-07 15.5 
			 2007-08 21 
		
	
	It is currently not possible to disaggregate spending to institutions as our programme is developing in light of the ongoing Joint Needs Assessment.
	Future allocations beyond 2007-08 will be announced next year following completion of the current Spending Round.
	
		
			  DFID Bilateral Aid and Imputed UK Share of Multilateral Aid to Somalia 
			   million 
			   Total DFID Bilateral Programme  Percentage  Imputed UK share via EC  Percentage  Imputed UK share via UN  Percentage  UK share via WB  Percentage  Total 
			 2002-03 3.1 52 1.9 32 0.9 16 0.0 0 5.9 
			 2003-04 4.0 53 2.8 36 0.8 11 0.0 0 7.6 
			 2004-05 5.3 56 3.6 38 0.6 6 0.0 0 9.5 
			  Note:  Imputed multilateral shares are available by calendar year only so these taken as proxy for financial years.  Date: 10 July2006 The majority of our bilateral aid in 2002-03 and 2003-04 was channelled through either non-governmental organisations or humanitarian agencies  Source:  Statistics on International Development 2005 and Imputed Multilateral Shares

Oxfam Offices (Darfur)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the implications of the decision of Oxfam to close two of its offices in Darfur because of the lack of security there; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: We share Oxfam's concern that the declining security situation in one area of North Darfur has forced them to close two of their local offices there. They hope their withdrawal will only be temporary, and are doing everything they can to reduce the humanitarian impact. Part of Oxfam's work is building local capacity to manage emergency water and sanitation systems, and they are confident that the water supply will not deteriorate significantly in the immediate term.
	We continue to press all parties in Darfur to implement the May 2006 Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) and the 2004 N'Djamena ceasefire to which the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) as a whole and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) agreed.

Palestinian Territories

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 8 June 2006,  Official Report, column 772W, on the Palestinian Territories, if he will place in the Library a copy of the UN's updated consolidated appeal for humanitarian assistance of 31 May.

Hilary Benn: I have arranged for the document entitled Revised Emergency Appeal, 31 May 2006: Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP); Occupied Palestinian Territory, to be placed in the Libraries of the House.
	This report can also be accessed via the Humanitarian Information Centres website at http://www.humanitarianinfo.org/opt/docs/UN/OCHA/CAP06_Revised_emergency_30May06.pdf.

Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what UK Government representation there is at the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility; what UK involvement there is in its decision-making; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of  (a) the value for money supplied from UK public funds of the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility and  (b) whether the facility provides quality development assistance which has positive impacts on citizens in developing countries by helping to relieve poverty; and on what evidence those assessments are based;
	(3)  when the Government last reviewed their involvement in the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility; and what the results were of the review;
	(4)  what recent assessment he has made of the  (a) role and  (b) value of the consensus-building activities of the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  what the timetable is for decision-making on the annual allocation of funds to the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility; and what public consultation will take place prior to any decision on this allocation.

Hilary Benn: Improving infrastructure is essential for achieving economic growth in developing countries. There is also a pressing need to increase the efficiency of infrastructure to give greater access to the poor and better value for money. Current investment flows are insufficient to fund these additional needs and the public sector alone cannot bridge the financing and efficiency gaps. A significant contribution from the private sector will be required. However, attracting private capital and participation is difficultaccording to World Bank figures, private investment in developing country infrastructure fell from US$ 49.6 billion in 1997 to US$ 12.5 billion in 2003.
	Among the main constraints to successful private sector participation in infrastructure are the lack of appropriate policies, laws, regulations and institutions and the weak capacity of the public sector to effectively manage private sector involvement. The PPIAF is a global technical assistance facility managed by the World Bank to address these constraints and, where requested to do so by developing country governments, facilitate and, where appropriate, raise the quality of private sector involvement in infrastructure. The PPIAF is a good example of successful donor harmonization in development. It is supported by 14 donors with a wide range of skills, knowledge and experience. As of April 2006, it had approved US$ 108.7 million funding for 495 activities in 101 countries. This funding mobilised an additional US$ 59.8 million co-financing from Governments and other donors.
	A particular strength of the PPIAF is its open and transparent systems of governance. These include procedures governing the application for, and allocation of, activity funds. As a partner in a multilateral facility, DFID abides by the endorsed systems and governance arrangements.
	DFID fully endorses the PPIAF's objective to help developing countries to improve the quality of their infrastructure to the benefit of the poor through effective public-private partnerships. In practice, this is largely achieved by helping Governments improve their policies, laws, regulations and institutions (their enabling environment). Our other objectives are to encourage greater donor coordination in designing solutions to meet the demands of developing countries, reducing transaction costs for developing countries and effective dissemination of lessons learned.
	DFID does not earmark its contribution to the PPIAF. Funding is pooled with that of other donors. The breakdown of total PPIAF expenditure in US$ by sector for each of the last three years is provided in the table. Future allocations will depend on demand from Governments of developing countries.
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005 
			  Energy
			 US$ 792,010 2,229,500 3,663,675 
			 Percentage 6 16 21 
			  Water
			 US$ 3,452,122 2,700,118 3,171,640 
			 Percentage 34 19 18 
			  Telecom
			 US$ 2,745,040 1,536,218 796,600 
			 Percentage 19 11 5 
			  Transport
			 US$ 3,624,750 1,701,270 3,361,993 
			 Percentage 25 12 19 
			  Multi-sector
			 US$ 3,690,383 6,053,654 6,409,295 
			 Percentage 26 43 37 
			  Total
			 US$ 14,304,305 14,220,760 17,403,203 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	As a partnership arrangement, the PPIAF is jointly governed. The PPIAF has four policy and administrative organs. DFID is represented on the first two:
	The Program Council is the governing body of the PPIAF, composed of representatives of the 14 donors contributing resources to the PPIAF, and chaired by the World Bank. The Program Council, which meets once a year around June time, is responsible for defining programme policies and priorities, approving an annual work plan and financial plan, reviewing PPIAF performance and overseeing other PPIAF organs.
	The Donor Steering Group provides strategic direction to the Program Council. Membership of this group is on a voluntary basis and decided in consultation with the full Program Council.
	The Technical Advisory Panel (TAP), comprises six international experts. It provides independent advice on strategy and evaluates the impact of the PPIAF programme by carrying out evaluations of a sample of PPIAF projects.
	The PPIAF Program Management Unit (PMU) is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the facility with a focus on reviewing proposals, arranging delivery of PPIAF programmes and activities, and proposing and administering the work plan and budget.
	Further details on these organs and the PPIAF governance structure are provided in the PPIAF Program Charter, dated May 2001, as amended from time to time, available from its website:
	www.ppiaf.org
	All project proposals are assessed for value for money and their potential for impact by the PPIAF. Once approved, all activities follow World Bank procurement rules that require open and transparent competition to ensure value for money. A sample of activities are systematically evaluated by the Technical Advisory Panel of independent experts that reports to the Programme Council. PPIAF evaluations have confirmed that 84 per cent. of its activities have satisfactorily achieved their original objectives.
	In 2004, PPIAF donors also commissioned an independent evaluationthe 'Strategic Review', of the first five years of PPIAF's operations. The objective was to evaluate PPIAF's progress against its original objectives and identify ways for improving its performance. The report, issued in the final quarter of 2004, was very positive, concluding that the PPIAF is making an important contribution to development.
	A number of recommendations were made that the PPIAF has since implemented. The recommendations included strengthening the strategic direction of the programme; increasing stakeholder involvement in the Program Council, more focus on outcomes rather than outputs; enhancing PPIAF's identity as an autonomous multi-donor facility and improving impact measurement.
	Changes facilitated by the PPIAF often take a few years to deliver the anticipated improvements to the enabling environment. This has made it difficult to assess direct poverty impact to date. Improving impact measurement is an issue that is currently being addressed. One proposal is that PPIAF activity should be more closely anchored to planned infrastructure projects. Further work is in hand to gauge the impact of PPIAF activity on the International Financial Corporation's national 'doing business' ratings that address various aspects of the enabling environment.
	Country-specific activities may be undertaken only where governments seek the assistance of the PPIAF.
	Consensus building is essential if reforms are to be successful. Governments are responsible for leading the process. The PPIAF has played an important supporting role. For example, the PPIAF has supported the development of a series of training courses on utility regulation and finance that have been targeted at key stakeholder groups including Ministers and senior Government officials, journalists and consumer associations. The aim of the training courses is to equip stakeholders with a sound knowledge with which to appraise reforms. Two training workshops have also been held for stakeholders. The first workshop was held in South Africa in June 2005 and the second was held in Costa Rica in February 2006. Feedback provided to PPIAF on the workshops has been very positive.
	DFID last reviewed its involvement with the PPIAF in July 2005, when considering a request for continued support. This review drew heavily on the findings of the independent strategic review and progress on implementing its recommendations. The strategic review reported that the PPIAF has a comparative advantage over other facilities by demonstrating clear focus, global reach, strong donor support and efficient management. It confirmed that demand for PPIAF services by Governments of developing countries is growing and that continued DFID support is critical to growth and increasing the leverage of funds required for scaling up. On this basis, DFID agreed to continue its contribution to PPIAF for a further three-year periodJuly 2005 to June 2008.
	Donors are asked annually to consider a financial plan incorporating an estimate of future calls on donors based on the anticipated demand by Governments. The PPIAF then considers requests for funding from Governments once a quarter in light of available funds and donor pledges. DFID has agreed an indicative biannual payment schedule for meeting our commitment to the PPIAF based on the financial plan. DFID funds are only ever released on evidence of need and good performance.
	DFID consults with members of the public, NGOs and other stakeholders when setting the UK policy for international development. It is not practical to consult the public on the many individual funding decisions that DFID takes to deliver this policy.

Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what assessment the Government have made of the likely impact on poverty alleviation in donor countries of the private infrastructure advisory facility; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment the Government have made of the value for money of the UK's involvement with the public private infrastructure advisory facility; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  how the Government seeks to influence the activities of the public private infrastructure advisory facility; what recent representations the Government have made; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what the objectives are of UK involvement in the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility; what UK funding has been provided in each year to the Facility for  (a) energy production,  (b) the water industry and  (c) other functions; and what UK funding has been allocated in each of the next three years.

Hilary Benn: Improving infrastructure is essential for achieving economic growth in developing countries. There is also a pressing need to increase the efficiency of infrastructure to give greater access to the poor and better value for money. Current investment flows are insufficient to fund these additional needs and the public sector alone cannot bridge the financing and efficiency gaps. A significant contribution from the private sector will be required. However, attracting private capital and participation is difficultaccording to World Bank figures, private investment in developing country infrastructure fell from US$ 49.6 billion in 1997 to US$ 12.5 billion in 2003.
	Among the main constraints on successful private sector participation in infrastructure are the lack of appropriate policies, laws, regulations and institutions and the weak capacity of the public sector to effectively manage private sector involvement. The PPIAF is a global technical assistance facility managed by the World Bank to address these constraints and, where requested to do so by developing country Governments, facilitate and raise the quality of private sector involvement in infrastructure. The PPIAF is a good example of successful donor harmonization in development. It is supported by 14 donors with a wide range of skills, knowledge and experience. As of April 2006, it had approved $US 108.7 million funding for 495 activities in 101 countries. This funding mobilised an additional US$ 59.8 million co-financing from governments and other donors.
	A particular strength of the PPIAF is its open and transparent systems of governance. These include procedures governing the application for, and allocation of, activity funds. As a partner in a multilateral facility, DFID abides by the endorsed systems and governance arrangements.
	DFID fully endorses the PPIAF's objective to help developing countries to improve the quality of their infrastructure for the benefit of the poor through effective public-private partnerships. In practice, this is largely achieved by helping governments improve their policies, laws regulations and institutions (their enabling environment). Our other objectives are to encourage greater donor coordination in designing solutions to meet the demands of developing countries, reducing transaction costs for developing countries and effective dissemination of lessons learned.
	DFID does not earmark its contribution to the PPIAF. Funding is pooled with that of other donors. The breakdown of total PPIAF expenditure in US dollars by sector for each of the last three years is provided in the table below. Future allocations will depend on demand from Governments of developing countries.
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005 
			  Energy
			 US$ 792,010 2,229,500 3,663,675 
			 Percentage 6 16 21 
			  Water
			 US$ 3,452,122 2,700,118 3,171,640 
			 Percentage 34 19 18 
			  Telecom
			 US$ 2,745,040 1,536,218 796,600 
			 Percentage 19 11 5 
			  Transport
			 US$ 3,624,750 1,701,270 3,361,993 
			 Percentage 25 12 19 
			  Multi-sector
			 US$ 3,690,383 6,053,654 6,409,295 
			 Percentage 26 43 37 
			  Total
			 US$ 14,304,305 14,220,760 17,403,203 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	The PPIAF has good systems for assessing outcomes. The following table provides broad details of these by main category since the PPIAF's inception in 1999 to December 2005.
	
		
			  PPIAF activities 1999-2005 
			  Category  Completed activities 
			 Facilitating transactions 54 
			 Creating/strengthening regulatory institutions 34 
			 New legislations and regulations 24 
			 Public Private Sector Strategies 26 
			 Workshops concerned with the above 176 
		
	
	All project proposals are assessed for value for money and their potential for impact by the PPIAF. Once approved, all activities follow World Bank procurement rules that require open and transparent competition to ensure value for money. A sample of activities are systematically evaluated by the technical advisory panel of independent experts that reports to the Program Council, which is composed of representatives of the 14 donor members. PPIAF evaluations have confirmed that 84 per cent of its activities have satisfactorily achieved their original objectives.
	In 2004, PPIAF donors also commissioned an independent evaluation the 'Strategic Review', of the first five years of PPIAF's operations. The objective was to evaluate PPIAF's progress against its original objectives and identify ways for improving its performance. The report, issued in the final quarter of 2004, was very positive, concluding that that PPIAF is making an important contribution to development. A number of recommendations were made that the PPIAF has since implemented. The recommendations included strengthening the strategic direction of the programme; increasing stakeholder involvement in the PPIAF's Program Council; more focus on outcomes rather than outputs; enhancing PPIAF's identity as an autonomous multi-donor facility, and improving impact measurement.
	Changes facilitated by the PPIAF often take a few years to deliver the anticipated improvements to the enabling environment. This has made it difficult to assess direct poverty impact to date. Improving impact measurement is an issue that is currently being addressed. One proposal is that PPIAF activity should be more closely anchored to planned infrastructure projects. Further work is in hand to gauge the impact of PPIAF activity on the International Financial Corporation's national 'doing business' ratings that address various aspects of the enabling environment.
	DFID is an active member of the PPIAF's Program Council and we are involved in discussions about the strategic direction of the PPIAF. Over the past couple of years, DFID and other donors have sought to encourage the PPIAF to make better progress on measuring the impact of its activities on poverty alleviation and to better co-ordinate its activity with others.

Rotavirus

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding his Department has  (a) allocated in each of the last three financial years and  (b) plans to allocate in each of the next three financial years to tackling rotavirus.

Gareth Thomas: DFID supports partner countries to strengthen the health system to address all major causes of disease including the prevention and management of childhood diarrhoea.
	The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations (GAVI) alliance board recently approved US$15 million for the completion of clinical trials of rotavirus vaccines in Africa and Asia during the period 2006-09. Furthermore, the board requested the development of an 'investment case' for the introduction of rotavirus vaccine, to be submitted to the November 2006 joint meeting of the GAVI alliance and GAVI fund boards. If approved, GAVI would finance rotavirus vaccine in GAVI-eligible countries (those with GNI of below $1000 p.a). The request for an investment case clearly signals GAVI's interest in supporting rotavirus vaccine.
	DFID is a strong supporter of GAVI. We have committed 68.5 million between 2000-08. Our main approach to financing GAVI over the next decade is through the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm). The IFFIm is expected to provide GAVI with $4 billion over 10 years and DFID has committed to provide one third of the finance required to deliver this (approximately 1.38 billion to 2025).
	DFID plans to sign a memorandum of understanding with the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh for 7.5 million core funding for five years. This includes funding their work on a new oral vaccine for rotavirus.
	DFID also supports Unicef and WHO; much of their work supports the management of common childhood illnesses

Street Children (Central America)

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will meet representatives of Casa Alianza and other international development organisations to discuss assistance for street children in central America.

Hilary Benn: On 26 May 2006, my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for International Development responded to a letter from Casa Alianza, forwarded by my right hon. Friend the Member for Oxford, East (Mr. Smith) outlining recent DFID assistance to street children in Central America. He would be happy to meet with representatives of Casa Alianza to discuss further the situation of street children and how DFID works in Central America.

Tobacco Control

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made on the World Health Organisation's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control since it entered into force on 27 February 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: The UK was one of the first to ratify the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC): 168 countries have now done so. Since the adoption of the convention, the WHO FCTC secretariat has been working to ensure that as many countries as possible sign and ratify the treaty through awareness-raising among politicians, policy-makers, health professionals and society at large. Regional and national consultations to assist countries in preparing for the ratification and implementation of the WHO Framework FCTC have taken place. The WHO Tobacco-Free Initiative is also providing technical support to countries to assist them with implementation.
	In order to support the development of a strong FCTC and combat tobacco industry disinformation, an alliance of non-governmental organizations from around the world has been formed. Now comprising more than 200 groups from more than 90 countries, the Framework Convention Alliance (FCA) is playing a key role in educating policymakers and strengthening cooperation across borders.

Tobacco Control

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action the Government are taking to help reduce tobacco use in the developing world.

Gareth Thomas: The health impacts of tobacco use in developing countries are of increasing concern. By 2030, tobacco will be responsible for ten million deaths per year, and 70 per cent. of these deaths will be in the developing world. The UK is taking action to address this problem.
	Firstly, the UK played a key role in negotiating and ratifying the WHO'S Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which sets international standards on tobacco price and tax increases, tobacco advertising and sponsorship, labelling, illicit trade and second-hand smoke among others. Secondly, we have recently given the International Development Research Centre a 1.1 million grant over 3 years for research into effective tobacco control policies and programmes that will minimize the threat of tobacco production and consumption to health and human development in developing countries. Thirdly, we provide advice to tobacco-dependent poor countries on constraints to their economic development and the livelihoods of their citizens.
	As a final point, DFID's focus on improving health systems will impact on the adverse health effects of tobacco. We are currently revising our health strategy and looking at whether we should be doing more on tobacco control. As part of developing our strategy, we are specifically commissioning some work to help guide us in this area.

Trade Matters

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost was of  (a) producing and  (b) distributing the booklet, Trade Matters.

Gareth Thomas: Freer and fairer trade is vital for poverty reduction, and Trade Matters is DFID's most popular downloaded publication. So far 150,000 copies have been printed in hard copy at a cost of around 64p a copy, totalling some 96,214. It would incur a disproportionate cost to disaggregate specific costs of distribution from the general costs of distributing all DFID publications. However, DFID has spent 26,928 on the promotion of Trade Matters, with flyers in  The Independent,  New Statesman,  Big Issue in the North, Sunday Herald, The Grocer, SAGA magazine, and the full publication in the Women's Institute magazine.

Yugoslavia

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many internally displaced people there are in the former Republic of Yugoslavia, broken down by  (a) current state boundary and  (b) ethnic group; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: According to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), the following numbers of people were internally displaced (IDPs) in the former Republic of Yugoslavia as of the end of 2005. The UNHCR does not have data on ethnic origin.
	
		
			  Country  Refugees(1)  Asylum seekers( 2)  Returned Refugees( 3)  IDPs( 4)  Returned IDPs( 5)  Stateless Persons( 6)  Various( 7)  Total 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina 10,568 215 1,273 182,747 5,164   199,967 
			 Croatia 2,927 8 5,261 4,804 2,736 20  15,756 
			 Serbia and Montenegro (including Kosovo) 148,264 33 5,828 246,391 2,482  85,000 487,998 
			 Slovenia 251 185445  881 
			 The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 1,274 7232,200 123 4,320 
			 (1) Persons recognized as refugees under the 1951 UN Convention/1967 Protocol, the 1969 OAU Convention, in accordance with the UNHCR Statute, persons granted a complementary form of protection and those granted temporary protection. (2 )Persons whose application for asylum or refugee status is pending at any stage in the procedure. (3) Refugees who have returned to their place of origin during the calendar year.  Source: Country of origin and country of asylum. (4) Persons who are displaced within their country and to whom UNHCR extends protection and/or assistance. (5 )IDPs of concern to UNHCR who have returned to their place of origin during the calendar year. (6) Persons who are not considered nationals by any country under the operation of its laws. (7) Persons of concern to UNHCR not included in the previous columns (in the case of Serbia, local residents deemed at risk by UNHCR).  Source UNHCR 2005 Global Refugee Trends.

WALES

NHS Operations

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 798, on NHS operations, on what date figures showed that 768 Welsh patients had been waiting for more than six months for treatment in an English hospital.

Peter Hain: Statistics Wales released figures on 28 June 2006 relating to NHS hospital waiting times as at 31 May 2006. These figures show that 768 Welsh patients were waiting for more than six months for inpatient and day care treatment at non-Welsh NHS Trusts.
	Further information can be found at http://www.statswales.wales.gov.uk/ReportFolders/Report Folders.aspx

Sickness Absence

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2006,  Official Report, column 571W, on sickness absence, how many staff in his Department have had two or more periods of sick leave of less than five days in two or more of the last three years.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office does not collect this information in this way, and obtaining this information could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Government plan to sign the Council of Europe convention on action against trafficking in human beings.

Vernon Coaker: The UK is currently considering whether to sign the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Human Trafficking. The Government are examining how the convention's approach could best be harmonised with effective immigration controls. The responses to the recent consultation paper on a proposed UK Action Plan on trafficking in humans will assist the Government in taking a decision on signature.
	The Serious Organised Crime Agency, together with the new UK Human Trafficking Centre, is at the forefront of tackling human trafficking within Europe. We have today launched a consultation paper setting out a further package of measures, such as increased data sharing and organised crime civil orders, aimed at helping law enforcement agencies better target and disrupt the activities of organised criminals.

Human Trafficking

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department has taken through  (a) education programmes and  (b) public campaigns to raise awareness of human trafficking.

Vernon Coaker: One of the aims of the recent police led multi-agency operation (called Operation Pentameter) which aimed at tackling trafficking for sexual exploitation was to raise awareness of the issue among the public and key stakeholders to be followed by a series of enforcement campaigns across the country. Examples of materials produced by Pentameter include posters in ports of entry in a variety of different languages and leaflets handed out to passengers at ports highlighting the dangers of trafficking.
	Work abroad is also undertaken by the Home Office, in conjunction with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development to prevent trafficking by investing in projects in key source and transit countries to raise awareness of trafficking.
	In the recent consultation on proposals for a UK Action Plan on Human Trafficking views were invited on how to raise awareness among potential trafficking victims about the risks of being trafficked. A summary of responses was published on 21 June and the suggestions put forward will be considered in developing the final UK action plan to be published later in the year.

Human Trafficking

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding will be allocated to the UK Human Trafficking Centre in each of the next five years.

Vernon Coaker: The total amount of funding for UK policing, provided directly from the Home Office (Project Reflex) amounts to 5.7 million per annum and is allocated until 2008. The UK Human Trafficking Centre will be funded from within this.

Human Trafficking

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Right of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography to be ratified by the UK.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office is undertaking a review to determine the extent to which the United Kingdom complies with the Articles set out in the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.
	The Government is keen to ratify the Optional Protocol as soon as possible but also wants to ensure that there are no gaps in the measures which exist to protect children in the way the Protocol intended. Once the Government are confident that the United Kingdom is fully compliant, the Optional Protocol will be ratified.

Community Support Officers

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to fill the projected budgetary shortfall between his Department's grant to fund extra police community support officers in Northamptonshire and the cost of employing them.

John Reid: The delivery of 16,000 police community support officers nationally by next April, with 138 of these in Northamptonshire, will be a significant boost to neighbourhood policing and tackling the Respect Agenda. The funding of PCSOs comes from general police funding, pooled Government grant in the Neighbourhood Renewal and Safer and Stronger Communities Fund, funding by partners in community safety and specific grant from the Home Office, not simply the latter as the hon. Gentleman has mentioned. Even so, we will be giving Northamptonshire Police Authority nearly 1.6 million of new money this year in the Neighbourhood Policing Fund.

Alcohol Exclusion Zones

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of alcohol exclusion zones in reducing crime and antisocial behaviour; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: No research has been undertaken into the effectiveness of designated public place orders (DPPOs) as they tend to form just one part of a wider local strategy for tackling alcohol-related antisocial behaviour. However, of the 184 local authority areas that have adopted DPPOs, 72 have more than one in place suggesting that the orders are helping police deal with the problem of alcohol misuse.
	A series of alcohol misuse enforcement campaigns have targeted alcohol-related crime and disorder since 2004 through the use of fixed penalty notices and test-purchasing operations. Antisocial behaviour orders, contracts and dispersal powers are also powerful tools in dealing with antisocial behaviour or alcohol related disorder on our streets.

Biometric Passports

James McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to allow people to pay for the new biometric passport in instalments.

Joan Ryan: Identity fraud costs the UK economy at least 1.7 billion each year and we have set up a public-private sector work programme to tackle all aspects of this problem. Our plans for a National Identity Scheme will also provide people with a highly secure means of protecting their identity.

Crime Reporting

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether arrangements are in place for the public  (a) in Redbridge,  (b) in Waltham Forest and  (c) in England and Wales to report a crime to a third party for onward communication to the police; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: Members of the public can report non-emergency crime and hate crime/incidents to a third party online via the national Police Portal (www.police.uk). Incident specific forms are available that seek information from the public. The information is then sent to the force in whose area the alleged crime is committed. Visitors to the portal are advised to dial 999 in an emergency.

Doctors

Mohammad Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many doctors have applied for work permits to complete their medical training in compliance with the newly introduced requirement; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: I am advised that up to 13 July 2006 there have been 495 work permit applications for doctors to undertake medical training under the newly introduced requirement.

Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests have been made in West Lancashire under the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 since its introduction.

Vernon Coaker: The sections within the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act are being introduced gradually and as resources become available.
	There have been no arrests in West Lancashire under section 5 of the Act, which came into force in March 2005 and creates an offence of causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable adult.
	The new powers of arrest, which were created under section 10(1) of the Act were repealed in January 2006 by the introduction of section 110 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, which made all offences arrestable. As section 10(1) of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act had not been implemented, data on the number of arrests for domestic violence related incidents under these powers are not available centrally.
	However, data from January 2006 to March 2006 on domestic violence arrests for all police forces, covering the extended powers of arrest, will be published this autumn and data from April 2006 to March 2007 will be published in autumn 2007.

Dorset Constabulary

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much central funding has been given to the Dorset constabulary since 1997.

Tony McNulty: The information is set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Government funding for Dorset 1997-98 to 2006-07 
			   million 
			   General grant( 1)  Capital provision, specific grants and special formula grant  Total 
			 1997-98 54.1 1.4 55.4 
			 1998-99 54.9 3.7 58.6 
			 1999-2000 56.6 4.4 61.0 
			 2000-01 58.4 2.0 60.4 
			 2001-02 60.0 5.5 65.4 
			 2001-02(2) 58.3 5.5 63.8 
			 2002-03 59.7 5.7 65.4 
			 2003-04 61.6 6.8 68.3 
			 2004-05 63.6 6.6 70.1 
			 2005-06 66.0 7.2 73.2 
			 2005-06(3) 58.2 15.0 73.2 
			 2006-07(4) 60.0 16.4 76.4 
			 (1) Total government grants includes general grant (Home Office police grant, DCLG/Welsh Assembly Government Revenue Support Grant and National Non-Domestic Rates). It also includes specific grants: Crime Fighting Fund, Rural Policing Fund, Basic Command Unit funding, Community Support Officers funding, Neighbourhood Policing Fund, Airwave, DNA Expansion Programme, Special Priority Payments and capital grants. Pensions deficit grant and Dedicated Security Posts funding is included for 2006-07. Special formula grant in 2006-07 comprises the former specific grants Rural Policing Fund, Special Priority payments, DNA grant and South East/London allowances. (2) Figures 2001-02 not directly comparable with 2002-03 due to transfer of funding for NCS/NCIS from police authorities to Home Office. Adjusted figures are comparable with subsequent years. (3) Figures for 2006-07 are not directly comparable with 2005-06 owing to the transfer from general to specific grant of pensions' and security grant. The adjustments to 2005-06 render them comparable with those for 2006-07. (4) General grant allocations are net of Amending Report adjustments for 2004-05 and 2005-06 that took account of ONS population data changes and some pensions' data changes.

Drug Classification Review

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department will put the drug classification review document out for consultation; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: Since coming into post the Home Secretary has not had the opportunity to decide how to proceed with the matter. In any event, it is sensible to take into account the conclusions drawn by the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee in its inquiry into Scientific advice, risk and evidence: how Government handles them which is using the classification of illegal drugs as one of its case studies.

Firearms

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what procedure is followed to dispose of firearms seized by police officers in the course of their duties.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 14 July 2006
	There are no central guidelines on the disposal of firearms except where firearms seized in respect of criminal offences. In such cases an order for their disposal are normally sought from the trial judge or magistrate. In these circumstances, the forfeiture and/or destruction order (as applicable) is actioned locally, at force level.
	Disposal is also undertaken locally in cases where firearms are seized by the police from licensed firearms holders as a result of a breach of licence conditions or where the person is no longer considered to be fit and proper to hold the weapon; or where members of the public surrender firearms voluntarily to the police.
	The only exception is where firearms are considered to have historical significance or instructional value for training. In such cases the weapons may be retained in liaison with a museum or the Royal Armouries or by the police in secure conditions as instructional aids.

Fox Hunting Ban (Scotland)

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the use of English police constabularies to enforce the fox hunting ban in Scotland.

Tony McNulty: This is an operational matter for chief officers.

Gun Crime

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many shooting incidents there have been in  (a) Southend-on-Sea,  (b) Essex,  (c) Hertfordshire,  (d) the Metropolitan police area of London,  (e) City of London police area and  (f) England and Wales in each year since 1986 in which (i) legally held and (ii) illegally held weapons were used against the police.

Tony McNulty: The requested data is not in a form suitable for publication.

Handling Centres

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the development of police investigation and detainee handling centres.

Tony McNulty: The Policing Bureaucracy Taskforce recommended in its report published in July 2002 that greater use should be made of prisoner processing units (PPUs) to handle and interview suspects and to complete initial case preparation with a view to freeing up patrol officer time.
	The use of PPUs, also referred to as Investigation and Detainee Handling Centres (IDHCs) helps provide an appropriate level of expertise in dealing with volume crime arrests and to enable designated police staff to be employed flexibly within such units. The performance drive and focus is in line with Office for Criminal Justice Reform's objective to bring more offences to justice through a more modern and efficient justice process by supporting all criminal justice agencies in working together to provide an improved service for the public.
	The provision of detention facilities within each force area is an operational matter for the chief officer of the force concerned. Information is not held centrally on the number of units or centres. objective to bring more offences to justice through a more modern and efficient justice process by supporting all criminal justice agencies in working together to provide an improved service for the public. The provision of detention facilities within each force area is an operational matter for the chief officer of the force concerned. Information is not held centrally on the number of units or centres.

Haringey Coroner Services

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which pathologists in Haringey Coroner Services  (a) are and  (b) are not accredited by his Department; and how many of these pathologists are over the normal retirement age.

Joan Ryan: The Home Office does not hold information on  (a) the pathologists instructed by specific coroners,  (b) the coroners instructing forensic pathologists on the Home Office Register or  (c) the age of the pathologists on the Home Office Register. I am therefore unable to provide the information requested.

Knives

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of reported knife crimes in Wales resulted in a conviction in each year since 1996.

Vernon Coaker: Although the homicide figures record where a knife or other sharp instrument has been used, other crimes specifically involving the use of a knife cannot be separately identified in the recorded crime statistics or the court proceedings data.

Mohammed Siddique Khan

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether an electronic tracking device was fitted to Mohammed Siddique Khan's car at any time prior to 7 July 2005.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 3 July 2006
	It is the Government's policy not to comment on speculation about specific intelligence.

Murders

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the murders committed in England and Wales over each of the last 10 years were committed within the extended family; and what estimate he has made of the numbers of murders in which alcohol was a contributory factor.

Tony McNulty: The information available centrally relates to homicides recorded by the police in England and Wales for each year between 1995 and 2004-05 where there was a family relationship between victim and suspect. Figures are also provided for this period where the suspect was known to be intoxicated at the time of the offence, but as they are based on information notified to the Home Office, rather than the actual case files held by the police or the court records, it may understate the true position. Figures are contained in the table.
	
		
			  Offences currently recorded( 1)  as homicide by the police in England and Wales,  1995 to 2004-05 
			   Extended family relationship( 2)  Alcohol related( 3) 
			 1995 232 107 
			 1996 218 87 
			 1997 226 84 
			 1997-98 214 74 
			 1998-99 194 75 
			 1999-2000 186 48 
			 2000-01 247 61 
			 2001-02 232 (3)161 
			 2002-03 230 172 
			 2003-04 206 181 
			 2004-05 213 170 
			 (1) As at 28 November 2005; figures are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and by the courts, or as further information becomes available. (2) From the information notified to the Home Office, the relationship between victim and suspect is known to be within the following categories: Son, daughter (including adopted) Stepson, stepdaughter (including child of suspect's cohabitant/lover Spouse Ex-spouse, estranged spouse Cohabitant, common law spouse Ex-cohabitant, ex-common law spouse Lover, mistress Ex-lover, ex-mistress Lover's spouse, spouse's lover, cohabitant's spouse or lover, lover's lover  Homosexual/ex-homosexual relationshiplong-term Homosexual relationshipcasual Other family (including foster children). (3) From the information notified to the Home Office, the suspect is known to have been intoxicated at the time of the offence, or on drink and drugs. The drink and drugs related cases may include those where drink was not the primary factor. The figures are affected by recording changes, most notably in 2001-02 when some forces introduced a new notification system.

Murders

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many murders were committed in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Tony McNulty: Available figures relate to the number of homicides recorded by the Metropolitan police in each London borough from 2000-01 to 2004-05 and are contained in the following table.
	
		
			  Offences initially recorded( 1)  by the Metropolitan police as homicide by London borough 2000-01 to 2004-05 
			   Period offence initially recorded 
			   2000-01  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			 Barking and Dagenham 4 2 3 4 8 
			 Barnet 8 4 5 2 5 
			 Bexley 3 2 2 0 2 
			 Brent 6 12 6 10 18 
			 Bromley 7 3 4 2 3 
			 Camden 7 10 16 1 8 
			 City of Westminster 8 8 9 6 5 
			 Croydon 3 7 6 12 10 
			 Ealing 8 9 9 6 8 
			 Enfield 2 6 6 6 12 
			 Greenwich 4 5 4 12 8 
			 Hackney 14 14 6 20 9 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 6 10 6 4 4 
			 Haringey 9 7 17 12 10 
			 Harrow 3 3 0 3 0 
			 Havering 5 3 1 6 0 
			 Heathrow 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Hillingdon 2 2 5 6 2 
			 Hounslow 5 6 2 7 6 
			 Islington 11 9 3 5 7 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 4 3 3 1 9 
			 Kingston upon Thames 1 3 0 1 2 
			 Lambeth 13 17 15 12 10 
			 Lewisham 6 7 5 9 5 
			 Merton 3 2 3 2 0 
			 Newham 11 7 14 15 10 
			 Redbridge 5 3 5 8 4 
			 Richmond upon Thames 2 0 2 3 3 
			 Southwark 15 11 11 13 9 
			 Sutton 3 2 3 1 1 
			 Tower Hamlets 4 9 11 11 8 
			 Waltham Forest 4 5 7 9 5 
			 Wandsworth 3 11 6 2 4 
			 Total 189 202 195 211 195 
			 (1) This measure is the one used generally for recorded crime statistics. It differs from the more commonly used 'currently recorded' homicide measure, which excludes cases where a suspect has been acquitted or convicted of a lesser offence. Figures using this measure are not available below police force area level.

Parking (Lancashire)

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many parking tickets were issued by Lancashire police in each of the last five years.

Tony McNulty: Available information on fixed penalty notices relating to all offences of obstruction, waiting and parking within the Lancashire police force area during the calendar years 2000 to 2004 (latest available) is given in the following table.
	Information for 2005 will be available early in 2007.
	
		
			  Fixed penalty data for obstruction, waiting and parking offences( 1) , Lancashire police force area, 2000-04 
			   Number of tickets 
			   Endorsable  Non-endorsable 
			  Fixed penalty notices issued   
			 2000 6 64,900 
			 2001 6 56,000 
			 2002 4 47,700 
			 2003 8 31,800 
			 2004 9 17,700 
			 (1) Offences under the Road Traffic Act 1988 s.22; Transport Act 2000 ss. 173 (5); 173 (6); 173 (7); 174 (3); 175 (2); 175 (3); 175 (4); 190 Highway Act 1835 ss 72  78; RTA 1988 ss. 19  21; Highways Act 1980 s. 137 (1); Road Traffic Regulations Act 1984 ss. 5 (1), 8, 32-36 and 45-53; Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 Regs. 101 and 103; Transport Act 2000 Part III.

Parliamentary Questions

David Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many written parliamentary questions tabled to the Department before 5 May remained unanswered on 25 May.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 5 June 2006
	Internal management information shows that 565 parliamentary questions tabled before 5 May remained unanswered on 25 May.

Police

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of each police force's budget in England and Wales in 2006-07 is derived from the police precept; whether he expects this proportion to change under the proposals for police force restructuring; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The proportion of each police authority's budget met from the police precept on council tax in 2006-07 is set out in the table. There are clearly differentials in precepts between a number of neighbouring police authorities.
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 19 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1057.
	
		
			  Proportion of police authority budgets met from police precepts on council tax in 2006-07 
			  Police authority  Percentage 
			 Avon and Somerset 31.4 
			 Bedfordshire 26.8 
			 Cambridgeshire 33.2 
			 Cheshire 26.2 
			 Cleveland 21.9 
			 Cumbria 31.3 
			 Derbyshire 29.7 
			 Devon and Cornwall 30.1 
			 Dorset 41.6 
			 Durham 17.9 
			 Essex 29.8 
			 Gloucestershire 40.1 
			 Hampshire 29.4 
			 Hertfordshire 32.5 
			 Humberside 25.3 
			 Kent 28.7 
			 Lancashire 21.8 
			 Leicestershire 27.3 
			 Lincolnshire 32.3 
			 Norfolk 35.3 
			 Northamptonshire 34.1 
			 North Yorkshire 42.4 
			 Nottinghamshire 25.0 
			 Staffordshire 32.5 
			 Suffolk 32.8 
			 Surrey 45.6 
			 Sussex 31.2 
			 Thames Valley 33.7 
			 Warwickshire 35.3 
			 West Mercia 36.4 
			 Wiltshire 34.5 
			 Total Shires 31.1 
			   
			 Greater Manchester 17.0 
			 Merseyside 17.4 
			 Northumbria 11.7 
			 South Yorkshire 18.3 
			 West Midlands 13.6 
			 West Yorkshire 19.3 
			 Total Mets 16.2 
			   
			 Total England (exc. London) 26.5 
			   
			 Metropolitan 25.0 
			   
			 (Total England (inc London) 26.1 
			   
			 Dyfed-Powys 37.4 
			 Gwent 28.4 
			 North Wales 37.9 
			 South Wales 25.4 
			 Total Wales 30.6 
			 Total England and Wales 26.4 
			  Source: English Police AuthoritiesOffice of the Deputy Prime Minister Welsh Police AuthoritiesWelsh Assembly Government

Police

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many formal complaints were made against police officers working in each constabulary in England in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what percentage of such complaints have resulted in disciplinary action being taken against the police officer in each constabulary area.

Tony McNulty: The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is responsible for the management of the police complaints system. I will ensure that the chairman receives a copy of the question and replies to you directly. Copies of the letter containing the IPCC's response will be placed in the Library.

Police

David Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers in  (a) Lancashire police and  (b) Cumbria police were involved in preparation work for the voluntary merger of the forces; and how many hours were devoted to this work.

Tony McNulty: This is a matter for the police forces concerned and the information is not held centrally.

Police

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many traffic police, excluding those trained also to act as firearms response team members, were operating on the roads in each of the last 10 years, broken down by police authority area.

Tony McNulty: The available information is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Police officers FTE whose main function is Traffic( 1)  (1995-2005) 
			  Full-time equivalent 
			   1994-95  1995-96  1996-97( 2)  1997-98( 2)  1998-99( 3)  1999-2000( 3)  2000-01( 3)  2002-03  2003-04  2005-05 
			 Avon and Somerset 213 206  216 222 228 
			 Bedfordshire 87 88  75 80 80 
			 Cambridgeshire 95 90  85 99 101 
			 Cheshire 187 191  194 200 194 
			 Cleveland 88 87  64 73 2 
			 Cumbria 116 116  107 110 108 
			 Derbyshire 147 141  107 121 116 
			 Devon and Cornwall 219 219  192 198 211 
			 Dorset 98 94  91 86 82 
			 Durham 113 114  111 119 108 
			 Dyfed Powys 100 111  136 105 141 
			 Essex 277 269  241 242 243 
			 Gloucestershire 81 82  62 66 67 
			 Greater Manchester 441 437  406 392 359 
			 Gwent 93 90  93 95 96 
			 Hampshire 265 268  248 246 244 
			 Hertfordshire 159 156  150 151 149 
			 Humberside 157 166  123 119 225 
			 Kent 179 169  104  122 
			 Lancashire 273 273  198 187 190 
			 Leicestershire 105 87  92 95 85 
			 Lincolnshire 104 101  90 89 96 
			 London, City of 32 32  24 24 28 
			 Merseyside 345 223  125 119 115 
			 Metropolitan police 1,005 922  583 592 1029 
			 Norfolk 109 111  120 121 107 
			 Northamptonshire 93 91  70 71 65 
			 Northumbria 225 221  245 253 165 
			 North Wales 131 127  115 114 76 
			 North Yorkshire 132 126  151 138 101 
			 Nottinghamshire 154 154  26 121 133 
			 South Wales 188 174  243 245 243 
			 South Yorkshire 205 204  180 127 134 
			 Staffordshire 238 227  50 49 58 
			 Suffolk 76 70  68 72 76 
			 Surrey 192 198  108 110 107 
			 Sussex 231 202  164 163 163 
			 Thames Valley 335 288  259 259 245 
			 Warwickshire 123 117  103 103 93 
			 West Mercia 134 178  292 115 117 
			 West Midlands 417 417  384 405 393 
			 West Yorkshire 343 341  320 314 317 
			 Wiltshire 118 108  91 96 93 
			 Total 8,423 8,084   7,525 7,238 7,005 6,902 6,706 7,104 
			 (1) Staff with multiple responsibilities(or designations) are recorded under their primary role or function. The traffic function includes staff who are predominantly employed on motorcycles or in patrol vehicles for the policing of traffic and motorway related duties. This does not include officers employed in accident investigation, vehicle examination and radar duties. (2) Data is unavailable for 1996-97 and 1997-98 (3) Data by police force area is not available centrally.

Police

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what guidelines are issued on informing a parent or guardian when a minor is stopped and searched by the police;
	(2)  what guidelines are followed when a minor is stopped and searched by the police;
	(3)  what guidelines his Department has issued on the length of time before stop and search records should be deleted;
	(4)  what guidelines his Department has issued on how long a stop and search record is retained in the case of an underage minor where there has been no further action after the initial stop and search;
	(5)  procedures are followed when an underage minor is stopped and searched by the police; and if he will make a statement;
	(6)  long the record is kept for a minor who is stopped and searched where no further action is taken; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: Code of practice A issued under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984 regulates contacts with the police and the public in the exercise of police powers to stop and search.
	Code A requires that a record of the stop or stop and search must be made at the time unless there are exceptional circumstances. If the record is not given at the time, the person must be notified by the officer of their entitlement to a record if requested within 12 months and informed how a copy can be obtained. The decision to retain records after that period is a matter for individual chief officers, irrespective of whether the record relates to an adult or a juvenile and the outcome of the stop or stop and search.
	Code A does not make special provision for the handling of a stop or stop and search involving a person under the age of 17 years old. Officers exercising these powers must do so fairly, responsibly and with respect for people being stopped or stopped and searched. It would be an operational matter for the officer concerned to determine whether any additional support or action would be required owing to the vulnerability of the individual; and guidance due for publication this summer by the National Centre for Policing Excellence highlights the need for officers to take account of the person's age and vulnerability .

Probation

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he expects to publish in draft legislation to introduce market forces into the provision of probation services; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: We set out our plans for the probation service in Working with probation to protect the public and reduce re-offending which was published on 30 March. We will introduce the necessary legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows. The precise timing and form of that legislation has yet to be decided.

Prisons

Gerry Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the use of the inner change programme in prisons.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The programme was introduced as a pilot only at HMP Dartmoor.
	Following a review under Prison Service Order 4350 (Effective Regimes Interventions) the programme is currently being withdrawn. The Review Panel identified a range of concerns, the most significant being:
	Poor quality of the manuals which did not demonstrate a structured and coherent programme
	Lack of consistency and clarity about the primary aims of the programme
	Lack of understanding and appropriate sensitivity to the diversity agenda of HM Prison Service
	Lack of protocols for the management of the mentor system, making it unsafe
	Inability of the programme to satisfy the Chaplaincy in a number of areas.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he uses of the improvement in  (a) literacy,  (b) numeracy and  (c) health, including drug and alcohol addiction, of (i) adult, (ii) young offenders and (iii) juveniles in custody.

Phil Hope: I have been asked to reply.
	At present, improvement in literacy and numeracy for adults in custody is measured by reference to their overall contribution towards the Government's Skills for Life targets by counting the qualifications achieved. For young offenders and juveniles in custody, the Youth Justice Board measures improvement by those serving custodial sentences of more than six months through an assessment at the start and end of the sentence that shows what they have achieved, and whether or not they have gained a qualification.
	As new Learning and Skills Council-led delivery arrangements for offender learning are introduced across England from 31 July, data on individual achievement by offenders will start to become available for adults, young offenders and juveniles in custody, and on those serving sentences in the community.
	A system of star ratings exists for prison health services. This is based on a framework of measures, including prison self-assessments, external inspection reports and prisons' performance against key areas such as mental health and dental waiting times.
	Since April 2006, HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) and the Healthcare Commission have worked in partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding. HMIP continues to inspect and report on the health outcomes for prisoners in all public sector establishments. The Healthcare Commission now assesses the effectiveness of primary care trusts' commissioning arrangements.

Public Pensions (Transferability)

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures the Department has put in place to assist pension transferability of public pensions for  (a) police and  (b) probation service personnel.

Tony McNulty: All public service schemes pay cash equivalent transfer values to other pension schemes in respect of accrued rights in compliance with pensions law. Under the Fair Deal for Staff Pensions there is a requirement to transfer pension rights when employments are transferred to the private sector under Public Private Partnerships or Public Finance Initiatives and subsequent transfers for former public servants. Public service scheme members can also transfer accrued pension rights by way of the Public Sector Transfer Club. The club is a network of public and private sector occupational pension schemes which makes it easier for employees who move between employers covered by separate participating schemes to transfer their accrued pension rights.

Scottish Criminal Records Office

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice he has issued on fingerprint identification following the misidentification in the case of Shirley McKie and David Asbury.

Joan Ryan: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department has not issued any advice in response to this case. However, The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) National Fingerprint Board has issued a document dated 4 April 2006 entitled 'Erroneous and disputed identifications: Learning from experience elsewhere'. This document is for guidance only and is not a policy document; it was circulated to all fingerprint bureau in police forces in England and Wales.
	The ACPO report referred to Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary Scotland's inspection of the Scottish Criminal Records Office (SCRO) that commenced on April 2000. The key recommendations of the inspection report were that the SCRO should:
	Move towards a non-numeric standard;
	Reform management and scope demands for staff levels;
	Consider moving to a centralised model for a national fingerprint service;
	Have external provision and management of competency testing for experts to provide a sustainable and defensible programme;
	Move towards a competency-based standard for expert qualification that all fingerprint experts within the SCRO should undergo;
	Provide a common procedure to deal with failure in the course of competency testing; introduce an improved automated manual system of case tracking.
	Produce national guidance on fingerprint standards and procedures and issue it to all fingerprint staff;
	Establish a national policy which encapsulates an independent review process to deal with all erroneous and disputed fingerprints.
	ACPO and the Home Office place a strong emphasis on ensuring forensic standards in fingerprinting. The Home Office will shortly be consulting about the creation of a forensic regulator (in accordance with the evidence given by the then Minister of State, the hon. Member for Leigh (Andy Burnham), before the Science and Technology Committee on 23 November 2005). The creation of the National Policing Improvement Agency through the Police and Justice Bill will also be very significant in providing an Agency dedicated to continuous improvement of policing, including the area of forensic science.

Terrorist Attacks (Compensation)

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what compensation  (a) the Government and  (b) other Governments paid to the families of the British victims of the terrorist attacks on (i) 11 September 2001 in New York, (ii) 7 July 2005 in London and (iii) 12 October 2002 in Bali;
	(2)  what compensation payments the Government have made to the families of victims of the Bali bombings in 2002.

Tony McNulty: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) awarded a total of 66,708 in compensation to 26 claimants in respect of the New York incidents of 9/11. The payments were made to them for the mental trauma they suffered from seeing their loved ones killed in the USA on live television here. No compensation payments have been made in respect of the Bali bombings. Through the Foreign Commonwealth Office's 'Aftercare Plan for victims of terrorism overseas' the Government provide immediate assistance to the victims and families of overseas terrorism.
	We do not hold information about compensation paid to the victims of these incidents by other Governments.
	As at 30 June 2006, CICA had made 370 awards totalling 2.324 million in respect of the 7/7 bombings.
	These comprised a mix of final awards and interim awards, and were paid both to victims and to families bereaved by the bombings. This figure will include some payments for non British nationals because neither nationality nor residence are criteria for claiming compensation under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.

World Cup

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effect of the World Cup on levels of  (a) alcohol-related crime and  (b) domestic violence.

Vernon Coaker: Police forces do not routinely provide the Home Office with information on specifically alcohol-related crime, and so it is difficult to gauge the effect of occasional events such as the World Cup on this. Police recorded crime statistics covering the period of the World Cup will be released in September.
	The Home Office funded an Alcohol Misuse Enforcement Campaign (AMEC) during the month preceding the World Cup. Part of the intention for this was to set the tone of acceptable behaviour during the competition itself. Results from this campaign will be released shortly.
	Research has suggested a link between major sporting events and domestic violence. Because of this, a Domestic Violence Enforcement Campaign took place in some areas during the World Cup. Data from this campaign are still being collected and analysed, and the results will be released when they are ready.

World Cup

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) police officers,  (b) intelligence officers and  (c) other government officials visited Germany for the 2006 World Cup; and at what cost to the public purse.

Tony McNulty: A police delegation of 78, undertaking a range of policing functions, were deployed in Germany for the duration of the England team's participation in the tournament. In accordance with the European Union handbook on policing co-operation in respect of international matches the costs were met by the host authorities. A Home Office press officer was attached to the police delegation. Some minor costs and reimbursements will be met by the Home Office. These are yet to be claimed or calculated. The Home Office does not hold details of any other Government officials who attended the World Cup.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Correspondence

David Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General what the average cost to his Department was of replying to a letter written  (a) by an hon. Member and  (b) by a member of the public in the latest period for which figures are available; and how much of that sum is accounted for by (i) officials' time, (ii) cost of stationery and (iii) postage costs.

Mike O'Brien: The information requested is not collated centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost (code of practice on Access to Government Information, part 2, clause 9). The cost of a stamp is a post office cost. The cost of stationery is difficult to estimate but around 1 when all the overheads in terms of posting, computer costs and paper are taken into consideration. Staff time varies considerably based on the length of the letter. It is impossible therefore to estimate an average cost for all the letters sent out.

Departmental Finance Directors

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Solicitor-General what the  (a) name,  (b) professional and academic qualifications and  (c) relevant experience are of the finance director of each of the Law Officers' Departments.

Mike O'Brien: I am answering this question for the Crown Prosecution Service, the Treasury Solicitor's Department, the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office and the Serious Fraud Office.
	The finance director of the Crown Prosecution Service is Mr. John Graham. He has a BA and MA in economics. He has extensive experience as a finance director and has fulfilled this role since 1999.
	The finance director of the Treasury Solicitor's Department is Tony Hindley. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). He was appointed on 1 May 2003. He was previously head of corporate planning for Defence Scientific and Technology Laboratory. Other positions previously held include financial controller and company secretary at Defence Evaluation and Research Agency where he was also a member of the board of management; finance director at British Nuclear Fuels plc. (UK Group) and financial controller and member of the sector board at BNFL.
	The head of resources and planning of the Serious Fraud Office is Bob Evans. This role incorporates the responsibility of a finance director. He is an MA (Gonville and Caius college, Cambridge) and Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. He is currently studying for membership of CIMA and ACMA. He was appointed in November 2005. Previously he was a member of HM Treasury for 15 years. He has also served as a financial supervisor with the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority, as economic adviser for the Ministry of Defence and has managed several large financial programmes and Government projects.
	The head of finance for the Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office (RCPO) is Justin Freebairn. He holds an MA in Logic and Moral Philosophy (St. Andrews) and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. He was appointed in March 2006 following a number of senior finance positions both within and outside central Government.

Departmental Publications

David Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will list the draft Bills produced by the Law Officers' Departments since October 2005; how many were examined or are planned to be examined by  (a) a departmental Select Committee or a combination of Select Committees and  (b) a Joint Committee of both Houses of Parliament; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: None.

Departmental Publications

David Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General what his practice is regarding meeting, discussions with and taking into account the views and opinions of  (a) private individuals and  (b) representatives of organisations when drawing up and framing legislation to be introduced by the Law Officers' Departments; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: My Departments are not generally responsible for drawing up and framing legislation. Where they are we always seek a full range of views in doing so. Consultation is a key part of the policy making process: both formal and informal.
	The Attorney-General and I, along with our officials, hold regular meetings with representatives of the principal stakeholder groups, and relevant experts, in the areas for which we are responsible.

Departmental Publications

David Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will list the unnumbered Command Papers produced by the Law Officers' Departments in each session since 1976; how  (a) hon. Members and  (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: Documents which are laid before Parliament as unnumbered Command Papers are generally restricted to explanatory notes to treaties, explanatory memoranda to statutory instruments and some Treasury minutes. All other documents are published in the numbered Command Papers series.
	A complete list of unnumbered Command Papers can be produced only at disproportionate cost. Copies of all unnumbered Command Papers are made available via the Vote Office.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Command Papers

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will list the unnumbered Command Papers produced by her Department in each session since 1976; by what means  (a) hon. Members and  (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if she will make a statement.

Vera Baird: Documents which are laid before Parliament as unnumbered Command Papers are generally restricted to Explanatory Notes to Treaties, Explanatory Memorandum to Statutory Instruments and some Treasury Minutes. All other documents are published in the numbered Command Papers series.
	Details of unnumbered Command Papers published since 1976 can be produced only at disproportionate cost.

Coroners

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what powers coroners have to investigate deaths abroad.

Harriet Harman: A coroner has the duty to investigate a death abroad which is reported to him or her where the body is brought back to England and Wales and where there is a reasonable cause to suspect that the death was violent, or unnatural, or sudden and of unknown cause or where the death occurred in prison.

Coroners

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what powers coroners have to reduce waiting times by transferring cases from one area to another.

Harriet Harman: Under section 14 of the Coroners Act 1988 coroners have limited powers to seek to transfer cases to another coroner on grounds of expediency.

Coroners

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what plans she has to review the powers of coroners to enter and search premises.

Harriet Harman: Proposals are outlinedin clauses 50 and 51in the draft Coroners Bill which I published on 12 June 2006.

Coroners

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the normal retirement age is for coroners.

Harriet Harman: There is no compulsory retirement age for all coroners. However, coroners who held office immediately before April 6, 1978, and did not opt out of the statutory provisions, can be required by the relevant council to vacate office if they have completed 15 years service and attained the age of 65 years. Coroners' pensionable service under the applicable local government scheme will come to an end at the age of 70 years.

Coroners

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many inquests have been successfully appealed against in the last five years.

Harriet Harman: There is no appeal against a coroner's verdict at an inquest. However, each year a number of inquests are held, quashed or amended by order of the High Court, and the number of such occurrences over the last five years is shown in the table as follows.
	
		
			   Number of inquests held by order of the High Court  Number of inquests quashed or amended by the High Court 
			 2001 3 2 
			 2002 2 1 
			 2003 1 4 
			 2004 1 1 
			 2005 3 1

Coroners

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what plans she has to remove boundary restrictions on coroners' jurisdictions.

Harriet Harman: Removing boundary restrictions on coroners' jurisdictions is a measure in the draft Coroners Bill which I published on 12 June 2006.

Court Facilities

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many courts have separate facilities for victims and witnesses.

Harriet Harman: There are 93 Crown courts 88 of which have dedicated witness facilities. Of the 355 operational magistrates courts 302 can provide dedicated facilities. The remaining courts, which are used on a more infrequent basis, make use of alternative facilities.

Crown Dependencies

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what assessment she has made of the effects on the Crown Dependencies of Protocol 3 of the 1972 Act of Accession; and if she will make a statement.

Harriet Harman: I have not made any such assessment, however the governments of the Crown Dependencies have confirmed that they are satisfied that the Protocol has achieved the purposes for which it was established in 1972, that is the free flow of goods between the Islands and the European Community.

Departmental Premises (Security)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what measures are in place to ensure that no illegal immigrants are employed in the manned guarding of her Department's premises.

Harriet Harman: My Department uses a mix of in-house and contract security guards.
	Where security guards are recruited directly to provide in-house services, recruitment is carried out in accordance with the requirements of the Civil Service Commissioners Code.
	Two suppliers have provided manned guarding services to all Crown and county courts since 2000. Another supplier provides manned guarding services to offices on the DCA HQ estate. Under the terms of their respective contracts, these suppliers are required to carry out security vetting of personnel they propose using.
	My Department assumed responsibility for magistrates courts in April 2005, many of which have contracts for manned guarding services awarded prior to this date. Information on individual contractual arrangements is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	A national procurement exercise covering all courts in England and Wales, which will standardise the contractual arrangements including vetting requirements, will begin later this year.

Departmental Premises (Security)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether her Department has  (a) directly and  (b) indirectly employed illegal immigrants as security guards.

Harriet Harman: In 2005, an individual employed as a security guard by Her Majesty's Courts Service, an Executive Agency of the Department, was found to be an illegal immigrant. His status was discovered in the process of an immigration officer's investigation, and he was found to have provided false information in order to obtain documents that showed him to be fit for employment. He was dismissed.

Departmental Staff

David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many of her staff are  (a) under and  (b) over 55 years of age.

Harriet Harman: The statistics are provided as at 31 December 2005 as staff headcount:
	
		
			   Headcount 
			 Under 55 years 23,124 
			 Over 55 years 5,499 
			 Total 28,623 
			  Note: Data on civil service entrants has been collected by the Cabinet Office on an annual basis. Previously published data on entrants has been based on Departments submitting returns on a 'Mandate' or summary level basis. Data on entry age is only available from Departments' records of individual civil servants, as civil service statistics does not include this information for all Departments.

Departmental Staff

David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many people over the age of 55 years have been recruited into her Department in each of the last three years.

Harriet Harman: The statistics for the last three financial years are set out in the table as follows.
	
		
			  Financial year  Total 
			 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2004 (1)193 
			 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2005 (1)299 
			 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006 345 
			 Grand total 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2006 837 
			 (1) The figures do not include the magistrates courts prior to 1 April 2005.

Early Retirement

David Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many departmental employees have taken early retirement due to ill-health in each of the past five years for which figures are available.

Vera Baird: The number of employees who have taken early retirement due to ill-health in each of the last five years is set out as follows. These figures are for the period April to March for each of the years shown.
	
		
			   Number 
			 2001 60 
			 2002 38 
			 2003 30 
			 2004 27 
			 2005 31

Family Courts

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what measures she has taken to increase confidence in family courts.

Harriet Harman: I refer my hon. Friend to my written statement of 11 July 2006,  Official Report, column 60WS.

Home Repossessions

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many court orders have been made for the repossession of homes in  (a) Eastleigh constituency and  (b) each district in (i) Hampshire, (ii) Southampton and (iii) Portsmouth in each year since 1987.

Harriet Harman: The following table shows the number of mortgage possession orders made in county courts in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (includes Aldershot and Farnham, Basingstoke, Portsmouth, Southampton, Winchester and Newport) since 1987. These are the only county courts in Hampshire and Isle of Wight that deal with mortgage repossession matters.
	The civil procedure rules provide that all claims for the repossession of land must be commenced in the district in which the land is situated. However, these county courts cover areas that are not necessarily consistent with other administrative or constituency boundaries, and therefore for instance repossessions at Portsmouth county court may relate to properties in other constituencies besides Portsmouth.
	These figures do not indicate how many houses have been repossessed through the courts, since not all the orders will have resulted in the issue and execution of warrants of possession.
	
		
			  Number of mortgage( 1)  possession orders made in Hampshire county and the Isle of Wight county, 1987-2005 
			   Possession orders made( 2) 
			   1987( 3)  1988( 3)  1989( 3)  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995  1996 
			 Aldershot and Farnham 118 370 663 486 470 322 344 291 309 172 
			 Andover 27 28 15 46 88 75 93 59 67 20 
			 Basingstoke 83 112 105 348 249 188 135 93 71 59 
			 Portsmouth 906 649 683 1,088 1,211 1,115 617 423 259 126 
			 Southampton 219 519 361 298 601 466 304 407 260 175 
			 Winchester 62 48 47 40 78 52 50 33 32 9 
			 Hampshire 1,415 1,726 1,874 2,306 2,697 2,218 1,543 1,306 998 561 
			
			 Newport (IoW) 106 85 124 121 220 140 123 81 141 69 
			 Isle of Wight 106 85 124 121 220 140 123 81 141 69 
		
	
	
		
			   Possession orders made( 2) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Aldershot and Farnham 139 34 153 99 66 65 71 103 122 
			 Andover 4 (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 
			 Basingstoke 56 70 28 51 46 43 63 58 72 
			 Portsmouth 168 324 179 135 111 142 125 158 314 
			 Southampton 95 164 141 122 109 94 107 175 223 
			 Winchester 9 13 11 7 13 6 11 9 26 
			 Hampshire 471 605 512 414 345 350 377 503 757 
			   
			 Newport (IoW) 59 36 33 15 22 21 35 48 62 
			 Isle of Wight 59 36 33 15 22 21 35 48 62 
			 (1) Local authority and private  (2) The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction. (3) For they years 1987 to 1989, Suspended orders were not separately counted. They are thus included in Orders made. (4) This court no longer deals with civil procedures.

Legal Aid

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what criteria govern the awarding of legal aid in housing cases.

Vera Baird: Applicants for legal aid in housing cases can obtain legal aid for legal advice and information, investigative help, or legal representation, if they pass the standard tests of financial eligibility and if their case meets the criteria for the grant of funding, as set out in the Funding Code. Housing cases are considered a priority for funding, and the Funding Code criteria for legal representation in housing cases reflect this. Cases in which the roof over the applicant's head is directly at issue are considered to be of overwhelming importance to the applicant and can be funded in a wider range of circumstances than other housing cases.

Legal Professionals

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many  (a) solicitors and  (b) barristers are practising; and how many were practising in (i) 1992 and (ii) 1997.

Bridget Prentice: There are currently 100,938 solicitors and 11,818 (self-employed) barristers who hold practising certificates.
	In 1992 these figures were 59,566 and 7,271 respectively.
	In 1997 they were 71,637 and 9,369 respectively.

Legal Professionals

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many women practise in the legal profession; and how many were practising in  (a) 1979,  (b) 1983,  (c) 1992 and  (d) 1996.

Bridget Prentice: The information available is set out in the table.
	
		
			  Number of women 
			  2006 1996 1992 1983 1979 
			 Barristers (self-employed) 3,543 2,115 1,420 573 409 
			 Solicitors 41,967 21,356 15,653 5,117 3,700 
			 Licensed conveyancers 533 (1) (1) n/a n/a 
			 Fellows of the Institute of Legal Executives 4,811 3,307 1,592 n/a n/a 
			 Total 50,854 26,778 18,665 5,690 4,109 
			 (1) No data available.

Legal Professionals

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the average earnings are of solicitors; what they were in  (a) 1976,  (b) 1986,  (c) 1996 and  (d) 2000; and if she will conduct a survey of the socio-economic background of lawyers.

Bridget Prentice: In 2005, the average earnings of a solicitor were 35,000 per year. This figure is drawn from across the whole solicitors profession and so does not differentiate for size of firm, number of partners, grade of solicitor etc.
	The full information, showing the breakdowns, is available in the Law Society's Private Practice solicitors' salaries 2005 fact sheet.
	Information on salaries prior to 2001 is not available.
	While I have no plans to carry out a survey of the socio-economic background of lawyers, I am taking forward a programme of work to encourage and increase diversity in the legal profession.

Legal Professionals

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the total average fees paid out of public funds per day for appearances in criminal and civil courts for  (a) prosecution and  (b) defence barristers who are (i) Queen's Counsel and (ii) junior barristers were in the last period for which figures are available; and what the comparable figures were in (A) 1976, (B) 1986, (C) 1996 and (D) 2000.

Vera Baird: The information requested is not available.

Legal Professionals

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether the average annual earnings of barristers have  (a) kept pace with,  (b) fallen behind and  (c) risen faster than inflation in each of the last five years.

Bridget Prentice: Information about the earnings of barristers is not held centrally.

Long Trials

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps she is taking to reduce the number of excessively lengthy trials.

Vera Baird: The Government are committed to ensuring that criminal cases are dealt with in a speedy fashion commensurate with the interests of justice. In the DCA command paper 'A Fairer Deal for Legal Aid' we clearly stated our aim to improve the financial control and overall management of the highest cost cases, achieving more timely and effective disposal.
	We have put in place a number of measures to work towards this aim, such as the High Cost Cases Review Board, a cross-CJS board which aims to bring greater scrutiny to the way that high cost cases are managed.
	The judiciary have also issued a number of protocols on the management of heavy fraud and other complex cases, terrorism cases and of the disclosure process, which are intended to ensure that judges actively case manage to minimise the length of trials, and that prosecution and defence teams comply with deadlines and directions.
	The Criminal Case Management Framework promotes robust judicial case management among operational practitioners and provides guidance as to how cases should be managed efficiently and effectively from pre-charge through to conclusion. The Criminal Procedure Rules 2005 add a degree of prescription to the practices outlined in the CCMF by ensuring that criminal cases are dealt with efficiently and expeditiously.

Magistrates

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what progress she has made in increasing diversity among magistrates.

Harriet Harman: In the year 2004-05 there were 28,300 magistrates of which 6.7 per cent. were members of the Black and Minority Ethnic community; 18.96 per cent. of magistrates were under 50 years of age.
	In 2005-06 the magistracy increased to 28,865. Of these, Black and Minority Ethnic members rose to 7.2 per cent.; and magistrates under 50 rose to 20.16 per cent.
	The gender split remains evenly balanced.

Magistrates Courts (Foreign Nationals)

Greg Hands: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether magistrates are permitted to ask the Crown Prosecution Service whether they have issued an IM4Deportation Notice when a non-EU foreign national pleads guilty to an imprisonable offence.

Harriet Harman: Yes, where the court considers this information appropriate to the decision it intends to make for instance if a non-EU foreign national is found guilty of an imprisonable offence.

Magistrates Courts (Foreign Nationals)

Greg Hands: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether magistrates are permitted to ascertain the immigration status of a defendant who is a non-EU foreign national.

Harriet Harman: Yes, when it becomes relevant for instance when considering bail or sentencing for an imprisonable offence. In practice this is something that would be brought to the attention of the court by the prosecution.

Official Visits

David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs on how many occasions she has visited each region in an official capacity in the last 12 months.

Harriet Harman: In an official capacity over the last 12 months I have visited the North West five times, the East Midlands twice, the East of England once, the West Midlands twice, the South East once and have made 11 visits in London.

Public Appointments

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many public appointments are within her patronage; what  (a) salary and  (b) other emoluments are attached to each; and what the comparable figures were in (i) 1976, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1996.

Harriet Harman: Details of the public appointments to public bodies sponsored by the Department for Constitutional Affairs can be found in Public Bodies, copies of which are in the Library. Public Bodies has been published annually since 1980 and the most recent edition provides figures for 2005. Each edition of Public Bodies contains details on the number of public appointments and remuneration details for that particular year. Further information, including comparable information for 1976, in respect of Department for Constitutional Affairs could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Small Claims Courts

Anne Milton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what average payment has been made to claimants in successful cases heard by small claims courts where the claimant  (a) had legal representation and  (b) had no legal representation in each year since 1997.

Harriet Harman: Information on the average payment made to claimants on successful cases heard by small claims courts is not collected since payment will often be made between the parties without the court having been informed. The following table gives information on the average level of award in cases where the claimant  (a) had legal representation and  (b) had no legal representation in each year since 1997, drawn from a sample collected from 29 county courts during the months of February, July and November each year and aggregated to provide national figures.
	
		
			  Small claims procedures 
			   Number of claims made where claimant was represented by a solicitor  Average size of award for claims using a solicitor ()  Number of claims made by the claimant in person  Average size of award for claims made by claimant in person () 
			 1997 43,499 829.47 54,314 561.25 
			 1998 45,517 1052.46 53,175 760.92 
			 1999 46,149 884.35 42,255 706.29 
			 2000 27,161 1389.41 28,675 1252.92 
			 2001 29,877 1363.21 28,456 1344.92 
			 2002 23,799 1157.99 31,920 1878.99 
			 2003 22,114 1651.11 30,029 1387.44 
			 2004 20,059 1411.48 26,041 1436.94 
			 2005 20,554 1081.61 26,967 1029.15

Small Claims Courts

Anne Milton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many cases have been heard by small claims courts where  (a) claimants had legal representation and  (b) claimants had no legal representation in each year since 1997.

Harriet Harman: Information on the number of cases that have been heard by small claims courts where  (a) claimants had legal representation and  (b) claimants had no legal representation in each year since 1997 is contained in the following table. The data are derived from case samples collected from 29 county courts during the months of February, July and November each year, which has then been aggregated to provide national figures.
	
		
			   Number of claims  Represented by a Solicitor  Claimant in person 
			 1997 97,813 43,499 54,314 
			 1998 98,692 45,517 53,175 
			 1999 88,404 46,149 42,255 
			 2000 55,836 27,161 28,675 
			 2001 58,333 29,877 28,456 
			 2002 55,719 23,799 31,920 
			 2003 52,143 22,114 30,029 
			 2004 46,100 20,059 26,041 
			 2005 47,521 20,554 26,967

Small Claims Limit

David Tredinnick: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what progress the Government have made with their plan for consultation on alternative options for dealing with the small claims limit.

Harriet Harman: The Government are currently working with stakeholders to make the claims process more timely, proportionate and cost-effective. We intend to publish a consultation paper later this year.

Social Exclusion

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what role her Department is playing in reducing social exclusion.

Vera Baird: The Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) has an important role in the social exclusion agenda. We are promoting the benefits of good early advice services for those most in need. Evidence shows that this can prevent relatively simple civil legal issues spiralling into more complex problems. We are also encouraging closer working across Whitehall. Our role is crosscutting in highlighting the worth of advice services to Government colleagues. DCA is also the facilitating Department for other Government Departments that require a final remedy to be decided upon by a court or tribunal.
	Specialisation and innovation in the courts system is also relevant. We are looking at both preventing crime through community justice initiatives, and re-integrating offenders into society. The Community Justice Centre in North Liverpool is spearheading such an approach.
	Another main area of influence is the role of family courts. The recent Review of the Child Care Proceedings System in England and Wales (produced jointly with DfES) aims to achieve better lives for children and their families by improving the care proceedings system and eliminating unnecessary delay in care cases, while ensuring that the process remains a fair one. The DCA is also a key player on the Domestic Violence Inter-Ministerial Group. There are currently 25 Specialist Domestic Violence (DV) courts. A bidding process is currently under way to establish a second tranche of these courts by 1 April 2007.

Social Exclusion

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what assessment she has made of the role of early legal advice in preventing social exclusion.

Vera Baird: Good, early advice services can prevent relatively simple civil legal issues developing into more complex and numerous problems. This is evidenced by the recent Legal Services Research Centre's Causes of Action publication, which also highlights the tendency for inter-related problems to develop around a key theme (broadly around 'family', 'homelessness' and 'economic' clusters). The Legal Services Commission's new Community Legal Service Strategy is informed by this research, and proposes that newly created Community Legal Advice Centres are located in areas of high deprivation in order to target the most vulnerable. My Department's recent Getting earlier, better advice to vulnerable people document underlines the need for ensuring advice is people focussed, with problems not being considered in isolation. It also highlights the importance of getting advice right first time, and ensuring more effective referral networks are in place so that people get the service they need regardless of their point of access to the system.

Social Exclusion

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what role she expects the Legal Services Commission to play in preventing social exclusion.

Vera Baird: As part of its role in delivering legal aid, the Legal Services Commission (LSC) considers the need for its services to help prevent social exclusion. The LSC can play its part by ensuring that services are better co-ordinated, focussed and effective, and that acts of advice/assistance increase. The new Community Legal Service (CLS) Strategy proposes that Community Legal Advice Centres (CLACs) are located in areas of high deprivation in order to target the most vulnerable. In less densely populated areas Community Legal Advice Networks (CLANs) will ensure that clients are able to access a range of high quality advice services regardless of their geographic location. Community Legal Service Direct also allows easy access for clients. The new CLS Strategy, in proposing that CLACs and CLANs will cover all five areas of social welfare law (Community Care, Housing, Debt, Employment and Welfare Benefits), will further promote social inclusion.

Special Advocates

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what discussions she has had on extending the pilots of victims' special advocates.

Harriet Harman: I met with Mary Williams, the chief executive of Brake, on 3 May 2006 and discussed whether victims' advocates should be extended to include deaths caused by driving offences. I also have regular discussions about the progress of the pilots with key stakeholders, in the pilot areas. No decisions will be taken about the future of the victims' advocates scheme until we have assessed the success of the pilots.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British officials are serving with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan; and what their objective is.

Kim Howells: One UK Government secondee from the Ministry of Defence serves with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), acting as a military assistant to the Head of UNAMA.

Ascension Island

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate she has made of the value of domestic properties on Ascension Island.

Geoff Hoon: The value placed on domestic properties on Ascension Island for the purposes of property taxation, extracted from the Valuation Roll 2005-06, totals 22,335,333.

Pakistan

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what recent assessment she has made of the impact on Christians of the use of blasphemy laws in Pakistan; and what recent representations she has made on religious freedom in Pakistan;
	(2)  what recent representations she has made to the Pakistani Government on the use of blasphemy laws.

Kim Howells: I raised the situation of Christians in Pakistan during my meeting with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, on 7 March, asking him to take action to protect religious minorities in Pakistan.
	Working with our EU partners, we raise our human rights concerns with the Government of Pakistan through regular dmarches, as well as bilateral lobbying. The most recent demarche was presented to the Government of Pakistan in June 2006. In the dmarche we reiterated our concerns over the abuses of the blasphemy laws and renewed our requests for the Government of Pakistan to repeal or modify them, to remove the possibility of the law being misused against minority communities.

Pakistan

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of reports of  (a) violence and  (b) infringements of freedom of religion against Christians in Pakistan.

Kim Howells: There continues to be incidents of violence against Christians in Pakistan, although the Government in Pakistan is quick to condemn them. I raised the situation of Christians during my meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, on 7 March, asking him to take action to protect religious minorities in Pakistan.
	We condemn instances where individuals are persecuted because of their faith whenever it happens and whatever religion of the individual or group concerned. We make regular representations to the Government of Pakistan on this issue, both through bilateral lobbying and working with our EU partners. This was last raised through an EU dmarche in June 2006.

Pakistan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made since January on behalf of Younis Masih, on trial for blasphemy in Lahore, Pakistan.

Kim Howells: We have not made any representations on this case since January. We continue to lobby, both bilaterally and as part of the EU, on minority issues in Pakistan, to remove the possibility of the law being misused against minority communities. In June 2006, an EU dmarche on human rights was delivered to the Government of Pakistan, which reiterated our concerns over the abuses of the blasphemy laws and renewed our requests to repeal or modify them.

Palestine

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Coventry, South (Mr. Cunningham) of 28 June 2006,  Official Report, column 439W, on Palestine, which parts of the Quartet aid mechanism to the Palestinians are expected to begin to deliver support in July; and if she will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
	Emergency support through the temporary international mechanism has already begun to reach the occupied Palestinian territories. On 11 July, the European Community began providing fuel for emergency generators for hospitals in Gaza. This will enable essential health services to continue after electricity supplies were affected by recent damage to the Gaza power station. We expect that further assistance to health services throughout the West Bank and Gaza will begin during July.

Palestine

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the likelihood of recent events in Gaza  (a) delaying and  (b) otherwise affecting the launch of the Quartet aid mechanism to the Palestinians; and if she will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
	The UK Government are deeply concerned at the increased violence between Israel and the Palestinians. We continue to urge both parties to act with restraint and to end the current cycle of violence. The case for the temporary international mechanism is strengthened by the worsening humanitarian situation. The mechanism has already provided emergency fuel supplies to generators at Gaza hospitals, keeping vital services going. Other assistance to continue health services is expected to begin shortly.

Palestine

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries have  (a) made and  (b) undertaken to make contributions to the temporary international mechanism to provide assistance to the Palestinian people; and if she will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
	The temporary international mechanism is open to any donor that wishes to contribute. The European Community has committed 105 million. DFID intends to provide up to 12 million through the mechanism. We are aware that several European countries are considering contributions, but any announcement will be for them to make.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Art Market

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action her Department has taken to strengthen the position of London as a global art market.

David Lammy: My Department sees maintaining the pre-eminent position of London within the global art market as vitally important. Through Arts Council England, we have invested around 480,000 of lottery capital funding into London studio spaces for artists. The Arts Council also supports a number of art fairs, including the Frieze Art Fair which last year attracted 31,497 people, encouraging new buyers for contemporary art and leading to 32 million of sales.
	My Department sponsors a number of museums and galleries, a number of which have important contemporary collections. The Arts Council has also stimulated public interest in contemporary art through its Own Art Scheme, which offers interest free loans to open up the market to a wider range of people. Own Art, although primarily focused on the regions, is to be expanded to involve a number of art colleges in London.

Casinos

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials have held meetings in the last 12 months with casino operators interested in securing licences under the Gambling Act 2005; where each meeting took place; and what was discussed.

Richard Caborn: Under the Gambling Act 2005, local authorities acting in their capacity as licensing authorities will be responsible for issuing the one regional, eight large and eight small new casino licences permitted by the Act. Licensing authorities will be required to run the competitions for these licences in a fair and open way. These competitions are not expected to begin until mid-2007, and the identities of the bidding companies will not be known until then.
	DCMS Ministers and officials have met frequently with casino and other companies that may be interested in bidding, and their representative bodies. These meetings have covered all aspects of the implementation of the Gambling Act and wider gambling policy, and are part of our regular and ongoing consultation with the gambling industry, local authorities and other stakeholders. Those meetings that have been identified that have taken place since 1 January 2006 are listed in the following table, and all these meetings took place in the UK.
	
		
			  Date  DCMS Minister and/or official(s) present  Who attended the meeting 
			 18 January 2006 Richard Caborn Rank Group 
			 6 February 2006 Official(s) British Casino Association 
			 7 February 2006 Official(s) Representatives of the gambling industry, including British Casino Association and Casino Operators' Association 
			 10 February 2006 Official(s) Rank Group 
			 21 March 2006 Official(s) British Casino Association 
			 11 April 2006 Official(s) Representatives of the gambling industry including the British Casino Association 
			 20 April 2006 Official(s) Overseas casino operators including Ameristar, Kerzner International, MGM Mirage 
			 10 May 2006 Official(s) British Casino Association 
			 15 May 2006 Official(s) Representatives of the gambling industry, including British Casino Association and Casino Operators' Association 
			 18 May 2006 Official(s) Rank Group 
			 23 May 2006 Official(s) London Clubs International 
			 24 May 2006 Richard Caborn and official(s) British Casino Association 
		
	
	Details of earlier meetings that may be relevant were included in my reply of 20 December 2005,  Official Report, columns 2654-6W to the hon. Member for North-East Cambridgeshire (Mr. Moss).
	One further meeting has been identified, which was inadvertently omitted from my earlier reply: DCMS officials and I met Detlef Kornett, Managing Director of the Anschutz Group in London on 7 July 2003. The minutes of this meeting were published on the DCMS website as part of a response dated 26 July 2005 to a request made under the Freedom of Information Act.

Casinos

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what  (a) rights of appeal and  (b) avenues to reopen decisions are available to those local authorities who have had their applications for a regional casino rejected by the Casino Advisory Panel.

Richard Caborn: The process for considering local authority proposals for regional casinos is a matter within the discretion of the Casino Advisory Panel having regard to published criteria and to Government policy. Local authorities have no rights of appeal to the panel. The panel, however, has given interested parties the opportunity to submit further relevant information. The deadline for any such information was 28 June 2006.

Coastal Resorts

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which coastal resorts in England and Wales received Heritage Lottery grants in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

David Lammy: The Heritage Lottery Fund have awarded the following grants to English coastal resorts (as defined by the British Resorts Association) and Welsh coastal resorts since 1994-95 to 2005-06:
	
		
			  Region/coastal resort  Number of projects  Total value () 
			  England   
			  East Midlands   
			 Skegness 3 1,232,360 
			 East Midlands total 3 1,232,360 
			
			  Eastern   
			 Aldeburgh 3 133,842 
			 Clacton-on-Sea 3 501,495 
			 Cromer 4 787,300 
			 Felixstowe 1 25,000 
			 Frinton-on-Sea 1 6,500 
			 Great Yarmouth 13 6,419,375 
			 Hunstanton 1 38,000 
			 Lowestoft 9 4,879,370 
			 Sheringham 6 1,327,340 
			 Southend-on-Sea 4 1,659,300 
			 Southwold 2 308,600 
			 St. Ives 1 67,600 
			 Eastern total 48 16,153,722 
			
			  North East 12 7,912,350 
			 North Shields 9 1,652,600 
			 Redcar 7 942,124 
			 Saltburn-by-the-Sea 5 1,676,500 
			 South Shields 10 6,074,725 
			 Sunderland 18 15,751,100 
			 Whitley Bay 3 157,680 
			 North East total 64 34,167,079 
			
			  North West   
			 Blackpool 10 6,063,500 
			 Fleetwood 1 28,300 
			 Grange-over-Sands 8 448,519 
			 Lytham St. Annes 5 168,600 
			 Morecambe 3 177,800 
			 Southport 8 5,552,000 
			 Thornton-Cleveleys 1 49,700 
			 Whitehaven 7 1,386,400 
			 North West total 43 13,874,819 
			
			  South East   
			 Bexhill-on-Sea 4 3,341,900 
			 Bognor Regis 3 1,802,700 
			 Brighton 27 1,365,862 
			 Broadstairs 1 433,000 
			 Christchurch 2 413,400 
			 Eastbourne 8 2,492,750 
			 Folkestone 5 2,126,618 
			 Hastings 8 4,819,100 
			 Herne Bay 3 1,230,400 
			 Hythe 2 2,581,750 
			 Margate 5 1,954,725 
			 Ramsgate 8 4,034,750 
			 Ryde 6 2,383,500 
			 Sandown 3 2,573,729 
			 Southsea 4 479,465 
			 Ventnor 1 30,000 
			 Whitstable 4 490,625 
			 Worthing 10 2,210,245 
			 South East total 104 32,032,795 
			
			  South West   
			 Bournemouth 7 3,431,025 
			 Bristol 78 73,601,388 
			 Brixham 4 119,300 
			 Bude 5 85,700 
			 Burnham-on-Sea 1 431,400 
			 Christchurch 2 2,670,000 
			 Clevedon 2 1,221,013 
			 Dartmouth 2 72,000 
			 Dawlish 1 20,400 
			 Exmouth 1 50,000 
			 Falmouth 22 21,017,031 
			 Ilfracombe 3 1,203,000 
			 Lyme Regis 6 492,800 
			 Minehead 6 787,000 
			 Newquay 3 89,000 
			 Paignton 2 71,700 
			 Penzance 23 4,384,812 
			 Poole 9 1,480,700 
			 Sidmouth 3 684,100 
			 St. Ives 2 648,700 
			 Swanage 3 109,600 
			 Teignmouth 1 50,000 
			 Torquay 9 7,530,800 
			 Weston-super-Mare 11 2,042,140 
			 Weymouth 5 2,747,288 
			 South West total 211 125,040,897 
			
			  Yorkshire and the Humber   
			 Bridlington 4 184,900 
			 Cleethorpes 2 324,000 
			 Filey 3 114,000 
			 Hornsea 3 186,900 
			 Scarborough 16 3,472,500 
			 Whitby 15 7,397,100 
			 Withernsea 1 3,800 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber total 44 11,680,200 
			
			 England total 517 234,184,872 
			
			  Wales   
			 Aberystwyth 18 3,892,036 
			 Colwyn Bay 10 914,981 
			 Llandudno 8 1,770,910 
			 Porthcawl 2 102,865 
			 Prestatyn 3 9,357 
			 Rhyl 13 2,733,523 
			 Swansea 68 14,448,580 
			 Tenby 13 1,104,401 
			 Wales total 135 24,976,653

Engagements

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 11 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 1761-62W, on engagements, if she will list the engagements entered in the ministerial diary of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Media and Tourism since his appointment to that post.

Shaun Woodward: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 11 July 2006.

Gambling

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether a sports levy on the gambling industry is being considered to help finance the integrity in sport sought by her Department's 10 point plan on Betting.

Richard Caborn: The Government have no plans to introduce a statutory levy to finance the integrity of sports.

Gambling

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the timetable is for local authorities to implement provisions of the Gambling Act 2005.

Richard Caborn: The Gambling Act 2005 will be fully implemented by September 2007. Under current plans local authorities will begin to consider the first applications for premises licences from 31 January 2007. My officials are discussing with the Local Authorities Co-ordinators of Regulatory ServicesLACORSthe timetable and resources needed to achieve this date.

Illegal Sports Betting

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what steps her Department is taking with  (a) EU and  (b) other countries to combat illegal betting in sport;
	(2)  what discussions her Department has held with  (a) EU and  (b) other countries sports ministers on tackling illegal betting from overseas on UK sporting events.

Richard Caborn: I outlined the Government's internal arrangements to protect the integrity of sporting events on which betting takes place with Jean-Francois Lamour, French Minister for Youth, the Sports and Community Life at a recent meeting in Paris. I have subsequently written to Monsieur Lamour explaining these arrangements in more detail.
	The Gambling Commission works closely with gambling regulators in other jurisdictions on a range of issues, including mechanisms for exchanging information on gambling operators and procedures to address illegal practices in gambling.

Illegal Sports Betting

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what measures are in place to assist  (a) the Gambling Commission and  (b) sports governing bodies to monitor betting from overseas on sporting events that are run in the UK.

Richard Caborn: The Gambling Commission may, once the provisions of the Gambling Act 2005 are implemented in September 2007, require any betting operator it licenses to provide information on bets that are placed with that operator. The Commission may share that information with the sports governing bodies listed under Schedule 6 of the Gambling Act. While the Gambling Commission has no jurisdiction over betting operators licensed outside Great Britain, it is continuing to build upon its co-operative relationships with overseas gambling regulators.
	The Government have worked with sports governing bodies to develop a 10 point plan which facilitates information sharing between sports bodies and betting operators.
	So far eleven sports bodies have signed up to the voluntary plan and an increasing number have Memoranda of Understanding with betting operators allowing for the sharing of information about suspicious betting patterns or individuals betting with those operators here or abroad.

Judicial Review

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1097W, on judicial review, where information is held indicating on what occasions individuals and organisations have applied for a judicial review of decisions of her Department; and how  (a) hon. Members and  (b) members of the public may have access to that information.

David Lammy: I informed the hon. Member in my reply to him of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1097W, that the information requested is not held centrally. The request includes all judicial review claims brought against the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, not just those in which judgment was given by the court but also all those withdrawn or settled by the parties and those where the court did not grant permission to proceed. The information will be held on files of Her Majesty's Court Service, of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and of the Treasury Solicitors Department. It is open to hon. Members and members of the public to make a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act Some information is also available on Her Majesty's Courts Service website www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk and other legal research databases, although these may be selective and are likely to be confined to cases that proceeded to judgment.

Liquor Licences

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the Department's policy is on whether a liquor licence renewed using grandfather rights before the date on which local authorities became responsible for such licensing should run for 12 months from  (a) the date of application,  (b) the date when renewal took place,  (c) the date on which the licence was issued,  (d) November 2003 and  (e) another date.

Shaun Woodward: Licensing authorities became responsible for licences granted under the Licensing Act 2003 on 7 February 2005. All licences granted under the previous alcohol licensing regime became invalid when the Licensing Act 2003 came fully into operation on 24 November 2005, regardless of whether they had been due to expire after that date. Under the new licensing regime there is no renewal date for premises licences and club premises certificates. Licensees currently pay an annual fee on the anniversary of the date when the licence application was granted.

London Olympics

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Candidate File, if she will provide an update on progress on the procurement of no-emission vehicles for the Olympic fleet; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: The Olympic delivery bodies are currently preparing the Olympic Transport Plan, a requirement of the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Act 2006. They will be consulting on the draft plan later this year.
	Low or zero emission vehicles will be used throughout the fleet of cars, buses and service vehicles for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
	The delivery bodies are currently in discussion with a number of potential marketing partners within the automotive sector and expect to appoint a single automotive partner in due course. The successful partner will be contractually bound to provide a fleet of some 3,500 low emission cars, MPVs and vans. During initial discussions all the potential partners have shown a clear understanding of and commitment to the bid promise of a low carbon Games. They will also enter into discussions with transport operators to provide a fleet of 1,500 low emission buses and coaches, and will also appoint a partner to provide low carbon fuels for all vehicles.

London Olympics

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Candidate File, when the exchange programmes and educational scholarships for developing international companies will begin; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: The promotion of sustainability will be a fundamental strand of the London 2012 Education Programme. LOCOG is in the process of working with partners to develop its plans for this programme with the aim of engaging and enhancing the learning of young people across the UK and internationally.

London Olympics

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what percentage of the waste generated during the course of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games will be diverted from landfill and sent for reprocessing; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans the Government have to implement delivery of a zero waste games; by what criteria the level of waste will be assessed; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: We have committed to zero waste to landfill for the duration of the Olympic and Paralympic games in 2012. The Olympic Board has identified waste as one of five key sustainability themes the Olympic programme will be focusing on. The Government, GLA, ODA and LOCOG are currently developing their delivery plans in this area, and are looking at appropriate targets for waste as part of the overall Olympic programme. As part of this, the ODA is currently investigating the opportunities to divert waste from landfill during the demolition and construction of the Olympic Park as part of its sustainable development strategy.

London Olympics

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether her Department plans to publish the appraisals of the contractors in relation to the 2012 construction commitments.

Richard Caborn: The construction commitments signed very recently by DCMS, DTI, ODA, the Mayor for London and the Strategic Forum for Construction are a major step forward in enabling us to showcase collaborative behaviours and best practice. The ODA and the Strategic Forum are now developing various measures in each of the areas of the commitments, and these will be made publicly available.

London Olympics

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the impact of winning the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games on sports participation among children.

Tessa Jowell: Winning the bid to host the Olympic games in 2012 creates the best possible opportunity to transform sport for young people.
	Through our national school sport strategy we are well on the way to ensuring that 75 per cent. of children do two hours of high quality physical education and sport per week by 2006 and 85 per cent. by 2008. In addition, by 2010 all children will be offered a further two to three hours of sport every week. We are also putting in place competition managers so that all pupils can compete individually or in teams. 20 managers have been in post since September 2005 and the next wave will be in place by September 2006. By 2010 all school sport partnerships will be supported by a competition manager.
	We have set up the UK school games which will showcase our talented young athletes in an annual inter nation and regions competition to be held from 2006- 2011. We have already appointed 600 young ambassadors across the school sport partnerships and we aim to have 822 in place by September 2006. Their objective is to help to spread the Olympic message and ideals within their school sport partnership, and act as advocates and role models to other young people.
	The National Sports Foundation is now in place and is responsible for levering and promoting new and additional money for grass roots sports. One of its schemes 2012 Kids builds on the success of the Olympics to encourage children and young people to take up sport.

London Olympics

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what basis the venues for the Olympics road show were selected.

Richard Caborn: The venues for the 2012 road show were selected to ensure that there is a wide and diverse coverage of events and locations from within each region in England and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. As well as all four capital cities and other major towns, the road show is visiting 2012 competition venues, sporting events, venues with special significance for the Olympic or Paralympic movement, cultural venues and tourist attractions. All road show venues and locations were agreed in conjunction with the Nations and Regions Group.

London Olympics

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to sponsor a future Olympics road show.

Richard Caborn: The Olympic stakeholders hope to stage events of this sort in the years from 2007 onwards although plans for future years are yet to be decided.

Museums and Galleries

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been towards increasing the number of people accessing museum and gallery collections by 2 per cent. by 2008.

David Lammy: The Department's public service agreement target 3 is, by 2008, to increase the number of people from priority groups visiting museums and galleries during the past 12 months by two percentage points on the final baseline estimate, which will be known in late 2006. The provisional baseline estimates published on 24 March 2006 are set out as follows. These data are from the Taking Part survey.
	
		
			  Attendance at museums and galleries by priority group during the past 12 months 
			  Percentage 
			  At least one visit   Range( 1) 
			 Black and minority ethnic 36.3 33.439.1 
			 Limiting disability 31.8 29.833.9 
			 Lower socio-economic 29.3 27.730.8 
			 All adults 42.7 41.643.8 
			 (1) Using 95 per cent. confidence interval.   Note: 1. Figures have been rounded to 1 decimal place. 
		
	
	Taking Part is new survey commissioned by the Department and the following NDPBs: Arts Council England; English Heritage; Museums, Libraries and Archives Council and Sport England. The survey was launched in July 2005 and is a continuous national survey of adults and children living in private households in England. The survey asks about engagement and non-engagement in and across activities within the Department's remit. The survey is the principal measurement tool for reporting performance on the Department's PSA target 3.

NESTA

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was spent on the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts scheme in each year since 1997; how many grants were made under the scheme in each year; how many applications were rejected; and if she will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: The information is as follows.
	
		
			   Total expenditure NESTA (000)  Total number of awards  Total number of applicants rejected 
			 1998-99 909   
			 1999-2000 5,914 31  
			 2000-01 9,659 64 244 
			 2001-02 13,581 95 973 
			 2002-03 17,823 126 912 
			 2003-04 20,843 206 1,190 
			 2004-05 24,773 255 1,024 
			 2005-06 25,332 273 1,460 
			 Total 118,834 1,050 5,803 
		
	
	NESTA was created by Act of Parliament in 1998, to support UK creativity and innovation. NESTA is working towards transforming the UK's capacity for innovation. It invests in all stages of the innovation process, backing new ideas and funding ventures that stimulate entrepreneurship. It aims to be the single most important catalyst for innovation in the UK.
	Its total expenditure in 1998-99 was 909,000, rising to 25,332,000 in 2005-06. The number of awards made in 1999-2000 totalled 31, rising to 273 in 2005-06. Finally the number of applicants rejected in 2000-01 totalled 244, rising to 1,460 in 2005-06.

School Swimming Pools

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Amateur Swimming Association on classification of school swimming pools not included in the category of supplementary net agenda; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: I have been asked to reply.
	We are not aware of any discussion between the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and the Amateur Swimming Association regarding the classification of school swimming pools.
	Indoor swimming pools are normally classified as 'supplementary net area', as set out in DfES Building Bulletin 98: 'Briefing Framework for Secondary School Projects'. This is because they are usually an enhancement to school facilities, not part of the core provision that we expect all schools to have. Outdoor pools are not included in either the net or gross floor area of school buildings.

Sport England

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many interviews of the 1,000 per local authority have been conducted so far for Sport England's active people survey; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: 266,883 interviews have been conducted so far for Sport England's active people survey which is on track to meet the target of at least 1,000 interviews per local authority in England by October 2006.

Stonehenge

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment her Department has made of the likely impact of the shortlisted options for the A303 at Stonehenge in the first year after their construction on  (a) visitor numbers and  (b) income generated from visitors to Stonehenge.

David Lammy: The specific impact of each A303 option on commercial performance at Stonehenge has not been modelled. However, should English Heritage's plans for a new visitor centre and access arrangements at Stonehenge go ahead, along with the published scheme for improvements to the A303, it is estimated that visitor numbers are likely to stay the same as at present. Any increase in visitor spending is likely to be balanced by the cost of operating the new facilities.

Stonehenge

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much income has been generated from visitors to Stonehenge in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The net income (not profit) generated from visitors to Stonehenge in each year since 1997 is as follows:
	
		
			
			 1996-97 3,156,883 
			 1997-98 3,310,350 
			 1998-99 3,755,389 
			 1999-2000 4,036,315 
			 2000-01 (1)3,827,769 
			 2001-02 (1)3,554,282 
			 2002-03 3,854,550 
			 2003-04 4,260,664 
			 2004-05 4,669,575 
			 2005-06 4,794,121 
			 (1) Decline in income in years 2000-01 and 2001-02 reflects the decline in visitors during the foot and mouth crisis and the aftermath of 9/11.

Stonehenge

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate her Department has made of the number of visitors to heritage sites in the vicinity of Stonehenge in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The only English Heritage site in the vicinity of Stonehenge is Old Sarum. Other key sites in the area are Salisbury Cathedral and Wilton House. The visitor figures from 1997 for Old Sarum and Salisbury Cathedral are given in the table. Visitor figures for Wilton House will follow shortly:
	
		
			  Number 
			   Old Sarum  Salisbury Cathedral( 1) 
			 1996-97 80,390 340,000 
			 1997-98 76,372 338,000 
			 1998-99 80,691 332,000 
			 1999-2000 81,378 331,000 
			 2000-01 75,921 313,000 
			 2001-02 70,868 262,000 
			 2002-03 65,818 263,000 
			 2003-04 58,299 244,000 
			 2004-05 53,977 271,000 
			 2005-06 48,637 268,000 
			 (1) Salisbury Cathedral does not charge entry fees, therefore figures are approximate and do not include people attending services, concerts or visiting the Close generally.

Stonehenge

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate her Department has made of the likely effect on the number of visitors to heritage sites in the vicinity of Stonehenge of each of the shortlisted options for the A303 at Stonehenge in the first year after construction.

David Lammy: Visitor number projections resulting from the construction of any of the shortlisted options for the A303 are not available.
	However, South West Tourism has identified Stonehenge and Salisbury as a key destination for regional tourism. Should the published road scheme be approved, it will enable English Heritage to make major improvements to the visitor experience at Stonehenge, encourage a longer stay in the region and potentially benefit attractions such as Salisbury Cathedral and other local heritage sites and museums.

Swimming (Peterborough)

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will take steps to improve the provision of swimming facilities in Peterborough; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Access to good quality sporting provision, including swimming pools, is essential if we are to encourage people to lead healthier, more active lives. There has been significant public investment in sports facilities in recent yearsby 2006 over 1 billion of Exchequer and lottery funding will have been committed to develop over 4,000 new or refurbished facilities. Swimming has been the single greatest beneficiary of sport lottery funding, having received some 249 million since 1997. Peterborough has benefited from 31 awards totalling 699,823.
	Provision for sport and leisure is currently a discretionary service for local authorities. Decisions on such provision are therefore a matter for local government. However, Sport England are encouraging and helping local authorities through the development of swimming strategies and toolkits to aid strategic planning. According to the Active Places database (available at www.activeplaces.com) there are 14 swimming pools within a 10 mile radius of Peterborough.

Ticket Touting

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which event organisers of music festivals in the summer of 2006 have signed up to her Department's code of practice on ticket touting; and if she will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: DCMS have been working with many of the organisers of summer music festivals including those representing the organisers of T in the Park, the Reading and Leeds festivals and the V festival as well as other representatives covering music, sport and the arts as well as secondary sellers and EBay.
	All of these parties were involved in the production of the statement of principles (copies of which I have now placed in the Libraries of both Houses, which was first presented at a meeting) hosted by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in April. The statement of principles sets out the broad guidelines which we expected all parties involved in the commercial selling of tickets to follow. Since that meeting DCMS officials have had continued meetings with these representatives to aid their sectors in the production of sector specific codes of practice, which puts the rights of the consumer at the forefront.
	Our principle in taking this forward must be to find a solution that protects fans and ensures that our creative, cultural and sporting industries are able to realise legitimate revenue streams.

Wembley Stadium

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the deadline for the completion of Wembley Stadium.

Richard Caborn: On 3 July, Multiplex announced publicly that it remained confident that substantial completion of the stadium would be achieved in July 2006 sufficient to enable practical completion of its work at the end of September 2006.
	Wembley National Stadium Ltd (WNSL) continues to discuss progress towards practical completion of the project with Multiplex and will announce an opening date in due course.

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMISSION

National Audit Office

Edward Leigh: To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission what progress the Commission has made in considering the proposal by the National Audit Office for the refurbishment of its headquarters building in London.

Alan Williams: At its meeting in December 2005 the Commission gave outline approval to the NAO's proposed refurbishment of its headquarters building in Buckingham Palace Road, London, subject, however, to three conditions. First, that the NAO should produce a detailed, fully costed business case for the project. Second, that the NAO should carry out a cost-benefit analysis of an alternative approach to its accommodation requirements, namely moving its headquarters to a North of England location. And third, that the NAO should provide a fuller explanation of its decision to rule out the possibility of acquiring alternative accommodation in London as part of the Government estate.
	At its meeting on 4 July 2006, the Commission considered the NAO's response under each of those headings.
	 The Business Case
	The business case produced by the NAO gives the total cost of the project as 77.44 million, spread over five years starting in 2006-07. In the longer term, there will be a small increase in annual resource costs to the NAO, resulting from higher business rates, capital charges and depreciation, partially offset by reduced running costs through greater building efficiency. Since submitting its original proposals the NAO has revised its approach to the decanting of staff which will be necessary while the building work is in progress. It is now hoped to carry this out in a single rather than a two or three stage process, depending on the availability of suitable decant accommodation. On the basis of the business case, the NAO made a persuasive argument in support of refurbishment as the most cost-effective way of avoiding what would otherwise bebecause of the building's current deficienciesan unacceptable risk to the Office's continued ability to function efficiently. The Commission was, however, conscious of the sensitivity surrounding the timing of the project, since, under the NAO's plans, the bulk of the expenditure would occur in the years covered by the next, and potentially difficult, comprehensive spending review. We therefore pressed the NAO on the implications of deferring the project (which, because of the need to avoid coinciding with the competing demands on the construction industry from Olympics-related activity, would entail a delay until 2013). The NAO satisfied the Commission that, given the deteriorating condition of the current building, waiting a further seven years before undertaking remedial work would pose an unacceptable risk to the NAO's operations and therefore to the service it provides to Parliament.
	 The Possibility of Relocating to the North of England
	In response to the Commission's request, the NAO examined Manchester as a possible location for a provincial headquarters building. Of a number of cities considered, Manchester was judged to come nearest to meeting the Office's principal requirements: good transport connections; and a sufficiently large local pool of qualified accountants to enable the NAO to recruit and retain key professional staff. On the latter count, the available pool in Manchester, though large in comparison with other provincial cities, is much smaller than London's and is insufficient to support the NAO's requirements. The cost-benefit analysis carried out by the NAO indicated that the basic costs associated with relocating would be broadly similar to those for the option of staying on in a refurbished Buckingham Palace Road. On the other hand, the analysis suggested that the uncertainty over the number of staff who would be willing to relocate posed a risk both of additional, but unquantifiable costs of redundancy and resettlement packages, and of disruption of core business activity. The Commission was satisfied that, for these reasons, relocation was not a realistic option. The NAO is, however, proposing to expand its presence in the North, concentrating on its existing team in Newcastle.
	 Alternative Accommodation in London
	As part of its consideration of alternative sites in London for its headquarters building, the NAO has examined the portfolio of vacant, or about to become vacant, properties maintained by the Office of Government Commerce. The NAO's assessment, which the Commission accepted, is that there is at present no building available of a size and configuration to meet the NAO's requirements on a long term basis, and at a cost competitive with the headquarters refurbishment option, taking account of the resultant loss of the current peppercorn rent. Taking all these factors into account, and having carefully considered the NAO's business case, the Commission gave its formal approval to the proposed refurbishment of the Buckingham Palace Road building. The Commission noted that, depending on how quickly the refurbishment work can begin, it may be necessary for the NAO to submit a supplementary estimate for the financial year 2006-07. The Commission will consider any such request if and when it is received. In the meantime, the Commission looks to the Treasury to make room within the public expenditure envelope for the relevant years for the resources needed for the refurbishment. For its part, the Commission will monitor carefully the progress of the project against both time and budget.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

Cabinet Office Staff Handbook

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 21 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1872W, on the Cabinet Office Staff Handbook, when the CD will be placed in the Library.

Patrick McFadden: A CD Rom containing the terms and conditions of service of Cabinet Office staff set out in the Cabinet Office HR Code, was placed in the Library for the reference of Members on Friday 14 July.

Departmental Staff (Sickness Absence)

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster pursuant to the answer of 5 June 2006,  Official Report, column 244W, on sickness absence, how many staff in her Department have had two or more periods of sick leave of less than five days in two or more of the years for which she has provided figures.

Patrick McFadden: The Cabinet Office had 365 staff with two or more periods of sick absence of less than five days in two or more of the years between 2003 and 2005. Analysis of sickness absence in the Civil Service, copies of which are available in the Library for the reference of Members, publishes sickness absence lost per employee for Government Departments.

FIFA World Cup

Greg Hands: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which matches  (a) she and  (b) other Ministers in her Department attended at the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany in their ministerial capacity; at what cost to public funds; and with what contributions from third party organisations.

Hilary Armstrong: Cabinet Office Ministers have not attended any World Cup 2006 matches.

Official Residence

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many staff work in the Old Admiralty Building.

Geoff Hoon: I have been asked to reply.
	On 1 July 2006, 1,093 Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff were employed in the Old Admiralty Building.

Parliamentary Questions

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many parliamentary questions tabled to her Department were awaiting a reply on 10 July 2006; which of those had been waiting longer than  (a) two and  (b) three weeks for a reply; and what the reason for the delay was in each case.

Hilary Armstrong: At the end of business on Monday 10 July 2005, there were 17 parliamentary questions tabled to the Department awaiting a response, of which one was two weeks overdue. The question was responded to on Tuesday 11 July.

Statutory Instruments

Mark Prisk: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many statutory instruments were made by  (a) Government departments and  (b) other UK authorities in each year from 1989 to 2005.

Edward Miliband: The number of statutory instruments made in each year from 1989 to 2005 is shown in the table.
	
		
			   Number made by Government Departments Authorities and UK  Total 
			 1989  2,503 
			 1990  2,664 
			 1991  2,951 
			 1992  3,359 
			 1993  3,279 
			 1994  3,334 
			 1995  3,345 
			 1996  3,291 
			 1997  3,114 
			 1998  3,319 
			 1999  3,488 
			 2000  3,424 
			 2001  (1)4,147 
			 2002  3,271 
			 2003 of which 2,999 Government departments and 355 other UK authorities 3,354 
			 2004 of which 3,103 Government departments and 349 other UK authorities 3,452 
			 2005 of which 3,297 Government departments and 302 other UK authorities 3,599 
			 (1) The number of SIs/SSIs registered during 2001 included 597 UK Government Sis, 36 National Assembly for Wales Sis and 65 Scottish Sis which related directly to the outbreak of foot and mouth disease. 
		
	
	It is not possible to provide information split between Government Departments and other UK authorities prior to 2003. The information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Detailed statutory instrument statistics are also available on the website of the Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI), at: http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si-statistics.htm

Statutory Instruments

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by her Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005.

Hilary Armstrong: The Cabinet Office has had one statutory instrument reported as defective since October 2005The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning) Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/2042). A correction slip was issued in February 2006 to correct the error.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Brownfield Sites

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many acres of brownfield sites she estimates there are in  (a) West Sussex and  (b) Mid Sussex.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 13 July 2006
	The information shown as follows is the total of sites reported by local authorities for the 2004 National Land Use Database of Previously-Developed Land. Local authorities do not claim to cover all sites in their returns, particularly small sites, so the totals understate the full amounts.
	
		
			  Hectare 
			   West Sussex  Mid Sussex 
			 Vacant and derelict land and buildings 153 19 
			 Currently in use with potential for redevelopment 344 42 
			 Total 497 61

Community Infrastructure Scheme

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many projects have been selected for detailed appraisal under the Community Infrastructure Scheme; and how many of these  (a) have been rejected,  (b) have been approved and  (c) are under review.

Yvette Cooper: Two London Gateway transit schemes were allocated 34 million of Community Infrastructure Fund (CIF) funding in November 2004 to provide support to the 2012 Olympics bid. In addition, the Government received 104 expressions of interest in January 2005 for the remaining 166 million of CIF funding. These were reviewed and in March 2005 the Government announced that 48 schemes would be invited to prepare full bids. Following detailed assessment of the bids received, 25 schemes have been allocated CIF funding, with a further six schemes receiving Department for Communities and Local Government funding. The Government are working with local partners to look into other funding options for a small number of the remaining schemes.

Community Infrastructure Scheme

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much of the Community Infrastructure Fund announced in July 2004 has been  (a) spent and  (b) otherwise committed to be spent on identified projects; and what these projects are.

Yvette Cooper: In total 193 million of the 200 million Community Infrastructure Fund (CIF) has been allocated following a series of announcementsthe final of which took place on 11 April 2006. The remaining 7 million is to be used as a contingency reserve to address any emerging issues that may arise over this two-year programme.
	Following is a list of the approved CIF schemes:
	
		
			  Scheme name  Growth area  Total CIF  million (to 2dp) 
			 A602 Improvements South of Stevenage LSCP 3.12 
			 Bishops Stortford Green Corridors LSCP 1.98 
			 Cambridge Station Area Access LSCP 0.60 
			 Dalston Slab LSCP 10.00 
			 Great Notley Garden Village Access LSCP 4.80 
			 Haringey Heartlands Spine Road LSCP 5.00 
			 Peterborough Fletton Parkway LSCP 7.01 
			 Aylesbury Vale Parkway MKSM 8.17 
			 Aylesbury PT Hub MKSM 11.42 
			 Aylesbury Southcourt Bridge MKSM 2.96 
			 Corby Northern Orbital Road MKSM 6.10 
			 Cross Valley Link Northampton MKSM 9.69 
			 East Luton Corridor Improvements MKSM 14.50 
			 Ml Junction 14 MKSM 8.42 
			 Milton Keynes Station MKSM 24.00 
			 Sandy Lane Improvements MKSM 5.72 
			 Sandy Lane Relief Road MKSM 4.51 
			 Wilby Way Roundabout MKSM 1.30 
			 FastrackGreenhithe Stn/Ingress TG 5.24 
			 Fastrack Thames Way TG 8.12 
			 Fryerns/Craylands, Basildon TG 5.90 
			 Langdon Park DLR TG 5.70 
			 London Gateway Transitstwo schemes TG 34.00 
			 Pontoon Dock Station Bridge TG 1.34 
			 Tidal Basin Roundabout TG 0.96 
			 Woolwich New Road TG 2.62

Community Infrastructure Scheme

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the status is of the appraisal of the Barking-Dagenham-Rainham-Grays-Pitsea 12 car platform lengthening project for funding under the Community Infrastructure Fund.

Yvette Cooper: The announcement of the final tranche of schemes to be funded under the Community Infrastructure Fund (CIF) was made in April 2006 and was placed on both the Department for Transport (DfT) and Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) websites.
	The Barking-Dagenham-Rainham-Grays-Pitsea 12 car platform lengthening project bid was not successful. There were numerous bids for GIF funding and DfT and DCLG ministers had to prioritise schemes against a cash limited fund.

Community Infrastructure Scheme

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the reasons were for rejecting the Rainham interchange project submitted by the London borough of Havering for funding under the Community Infrastructure Fund.

Yvette Cooper: There were many bids for Community Infrastructure Funding. We, with colleagues in the Department for Transport, had to prioritise schemes against a cash limited fund. The bid for the Rainham scheme was to fund enabling works and so would not, in itself, have delivered a capital infrastructure project to support housing growth.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many full-time equivalent staff work in the council tax capping division in her Department.

Phil Woolas: The Expenditure Control Division of the Department deals with council tax capping among other issues. At present the division has 8.6 full-time equivalent members of staff, including temporary staff.
	It is not possible to set out the split of staff input between capping and other work.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total administrative cost was of the council tax capping division in her Department in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06.

Phil Woolas: The total expenditure incurred by the Division dealing with council tax capping, including work on issues other than capping, was:
	
		
			   () 
			 2004-05 503,610.22 
			 2005-06 414,949.95 
		
	
	It is not possible to set out the split of resources between capping and other work.

Council Tax

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of the population pays council tax; and what percentage of those qualify for discounts.

Phil Woolas: The number of chargeable dwellings liable for council tax in England as at November 2005 was 21,267,000 of which 8,018,000 dwellings (37.7 per cent.) were entitled to a discount.
	The number of chargeable dwellings and those entitled to a discount are taken from the CTB1 forms submitted to this Department by all 354 billing authorities in England. The number of individuals liable for council tax cannot be accurately determined from these or other sources.

Council Tax

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much council tax was collected by local authorities in the last year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: A total of 18.4 billion council tax was collected by local authorities in England in 2005-06, irrespective of the financial year to which the liabilities relate.

Councillors (Parental Rights)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what  (a) maternity rights and  (b) paternity rights councillors have; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: Legislation does not provide maternity or paternity rights for local authority councillors.

Crasher Green (Stroud)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she will name the successful bidder for the Crasher Green site, Stroud.

Yvette Cooper: English Partnerships is currently conducting a feasibility study into the development of the Crasher Green site in Stroud which is due to be completed in July. A decision about the future development of the site will follow in the autumn.

Discharged Psychiatric Patients

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the number of discharged psychiatric patients who  (a) became homeless and  (b) were given (i) temporary accommodation and (ii) council housing in each year since 1990.

Yvette Cooper: Although psychiatric patients should not be discharged as homeless, some may nevertheless self-discharge and not have accommodation available to them. People may be discharged to temporary accommodation as part of a plan agreed between mental health services and housing departments, but this is not recorded as part of routine monitoring.
	Information collected by my Department about households accepted by local authorities as unintentionally homeless and in a priority need group identifies those where the applicant or a household member was vulnerable as a result of mental illness or disability. Results for years since 1997 are presented in Table 4 of the quarterly Statistical Release on homelessness, first quarter of 2006, published on 12 June. A summary of information back to 1990 is presented in the table. However, information on the number of these who had been former psychiatric patients, and whether they were subsequently allocated temporary accommodation or a settled tenancy, is not available centrally.
	
		
			  Households accepted as unintentionally homeless and in priority need( 1) , England 
			   Total  Of which, vulnerable due to mental illness or disability: 
			 1990-91 132,280 4,300 
			 1991-92 139,630 5,200 
			 1992-93 136,230 5,950 
			 1993-94 125,360 6,740 
			 1994-95 116,850 7,200 
			 1995-96 116,550 7,570 
			 1996-97 110,600 8,010 
			 1997-98 102,430 6,930 
			 1998-99 104,260 7,260 
			 1999-2000 105,580 7,580 
			 2000-01 114,670 9,110 
			 2001-02 116,660 9,970 
			 2002-03 128,540 10,980 
			 2003-04 135,430 12,070 
			 2004-05 120,860 10,650 
			 2005-06 93,980 7,340 
			 (1) All households eligible under homelessness legislation, found to be unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category, and consequently owed a main homelessness duty.  Source: DCLG P1E homelessness returns (quarterly).

Green and White Papers

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will list in date order  (a) Green and  (b) White Papers produced by her Department since October 2005.

Angela Smith: No Green or White Papers have been published by this Department for the period in question.

Homelessness

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many single vulnerable households were accepted as homeless in the Ribble Valley in each of the last five years.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 13 July 2006
	Information about local authorities' actions under homelessness legislation is collected quarterly, at local authority level. The parliamentary constituency of the Ribble Valley shares its boundaries with those of Ribble Valley district council.
	Statistical returns distinguish the number of households accepted as eligible for assistance, and unintentionally homeless according to the main category of priority need the applicant falls within. The returns do not identify the number of people in the household. Information reported by Ribble Valley in each year since 2001-02 is summarised in the following table:
	
		
			  Households accepted by Ribble Valley district council as eligible, unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category 
			   Total households  Of which: containing dependent children  Of which: containing an expectant mother  Applicant of family member vulnerable( 1) 
			 2001-02 31 14 2 15 
			 2002-03 51 17 0 34 
			 2003-04 78 31 5 42 
			 2004-05 45 20 4 21 
			 2005-06 38 25 2 11 
			 (1) As well as applicants, or members of their household, considered vulnerable, figures also include households homeless in an emergency, applicants aged 16 or 17 years old, and applicants formerly in care and aged 18 to 20 years old.  Source DCLG P1E Homelessness returns (quarterly)

Homelessness

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people were  (a) homeless and  (b) placed in emergency accommodation in (i) each of the past five years and (ii) 2006-07 to date; and how many (A) new local authority lettings, (B) new housing association lettings and (C) sales under right-to-buy took place in each borough in each year.

Yvette Cooper: Information about local authorities' actions under homelessness legislation, which is collected in respect of households rather than persons, is summarised in a quarterly Statistical Release, the latest of which was published by the Department for Communities and Local Government on 12 June.
	Copies of the Statistical Release and tables are available in the Library, and from the DCLG website at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=l002882 PressNoticeID=2169
	 (a) Table 1 of the Statistical Release provides the number of decisions on homelessness applications from eligible households in each year since 1997, distinguishing those found to be homeless. This includes those accepted by local authorities as unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category, and consequently owed a main homelessness duty.
	Information is also collected by the Department on the number of people who sleep roughthat is, those who are literally roofless on a single night. These are recorded on a calendar year basis, and figures for 1998 up to the latest available figures, for 2005, are also presented on DCLG's website, at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/pub/132/National RoughSleepingEstimate2005Excel116Kb_idll50132.xls
	(b) The duty owed to a person accepted as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need is to secure suitable accommodation. If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority may secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available. Table 6 of the Statistical Release presents those in various forms of temporary accommodation arranged by local authorities at the end of each quarter since March 1997.
	The supplementary tables of the release show the results at local authority level.
	No data are yet available for 2006-07. Figures for the first quarter of 2006-07 will be published in September.
	(A) The number of new local authority lettings in each local authority for the years 2000-01 to 2004-05 has been placed in the Library of the House. No data are available for 2005-06 or 2006-07.
	(B) The number of new Housing Association lettings in each local authority for the years 2001/02 to 2005-06 has been placed in the Library of the House. No data are available for 2006-07.
	(C) Data on the number of sales under right-to-buy are available from the DCLG website at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/pub/383/Table648Excel 545Kb_idl156383.xls

Homelessness

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homeless households in  (a) West Lancashire and  (b) Lancashire were (i) living in temporary accommodation and (ii) sleeping rough in each of the past five years; and how many beds were available for homeless households in each area in each year.

Yvette Cooper: Local authorities report their activities under homelessness legislation quarterly, and this includes the number of homeless households in various forms of temporary accommodation as on the last day of the quarter.
	The duty owed to a person accepted as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need is to secure suitable accommodation. If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority may secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available. As an alternative to the provision of temporary accommodation some authorities arrange for households to remain in their current accommodation until a settled solution becomes available.
	Information is also collected on the number of people who sleep rough - that is, those who are literally roofless on a single night. These are recorded on a calendar year basis, and figures for mid-year 2001 up to the latest available figures, for 2005, are also presented in the following tables.
	 (a) The West Lancashire constituency is wholly contained in the West Lancashire local authority, although the authority also contains part of the South Ribble constituency. Temporary accommodation and rough sleeping figures for the entire West Lancashire authority for the last 5 years are in the following table:
	
		
			  (i) Homeless households in temporary accommodation arranged by West Lancashire district council, and (ii) the number of rough sleepers in West Lancashire 
			   Number of households in temporary accommodation( 1)  (31 March snapshot)  Number of rough sleepers, people, mid-year (June) estimate( 2) 
			 2001-02 6  
			 2002-03   
			 2003-04 5  
			 2004-05 2  
			 2005-06 1  
			 (1) Households in accommodation at the end of the year (March) either pending a decision on their homelessness application or awaiting allocation of a settled home following acceptance. Excludes those households designated as homeless at home that have remained in their existing accommodation and have the same rights to suitable alternative accommodation as those in accommodation arranged by the authority. (2) Number of persons sleeping rough are based on local authority counts during the year and presented as a mid-year estimate. If no count takes place during the year an estimate is given by the local authority.  Source: DCLG P1E Homelessness (quarterly) and HSSA (annual) returns. 
		
	
	 (b) The geographical county of Lancashire is made up of 12 district authorities and 2 unitary authorities, Blackburn and Darwen and Blackpool. The totals are in the following table:
	
		
			  (i) Homeless households in temporary accommodation arranged by local authorities in Lancashire, and (ii) the number of rough sleepers in Lancashire 
			   Number of households in temporary accommodation( 1)  (31 March snapshot)  o.w. Unitary authority  o.w. LA districts  Number of rough sleepers, people, mid-year (June) estimate( 2)  o.w. Unitary authority  o.w. LA districts 
			 2001-02 270 52 218 4 4  
			 2002-03 343 76 267 7 4 3 
			 2003-04 360 102 258 3  3 
			 2004-05 444 132 312 21 4 17 
			 2005-06 348 76 272 7 4 3 
			 (1) Households in accommodation at the end of the year (March) either pending a decision on their homelessness application or awaiting allocation of a settled home following acceptance. Excludes those households designated as homeless at home that have remained in their existing accommodation and have the same rights to suitable alternative accommodation as those in accommodation arranged by the authority. (2) Number of persons sleeping rough are based on local authority counts during the year and presented as a mid-year estimate. If no count takes place during the year an estimate is given by the local authority.  Source: DCLG P1E Homelessness (quarterly) and HSSA (annual) returns. 
		
	
	Information on the number of beds available for homeless households is not held centrally.

Homelessness

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people have been in temporary accommodation in West Lancashire in each of the last 10 years.

Yvette Cooper: Local authorities report their activities under homelessness legislation quarterly, and this includes the number of homeless households in various forms of temporary accommodation as on the last day of the quarter.
	The duty owed to a person accepted as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need is to secure suitable accommodation. If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority may secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available. As an alternative to the provision of temporary accommodation some authorities arrange for households to remain in their current accommodation (homeless at home), until a settled solution becomes available.
	The West Lancashire constituency is wholly contained in the West Lancashire local authority, although the authority also contains part of the South Ribble constituency. Figures for the entire West Lancashire authority for the last 10 years are tabled as follows:
	
		
			  Homeless households in temporary accommodation arranged by West Lancashire district council 
			  31 March  Number( 1) 
			 1996-97 6 
			 1997-98 6 
			 1998-99 3 
			 1999-2000 1 
			 2000-01 4 
			 2001-02 6 
			 2002-03 0 
			 2003-04 5 
			 2004-05 2 
			 2005-06 1 
			 (1) Households in accommodation at the end of the year (March) either pending a decision on their homelessness application or awaiting allocation of a settled home following acceptance. Excludes those households designated as homeless at home that have remained in their existing accommodation and have the same rights to suitable alternative accommodation as those in accommodation arranged by the authority.  Source: DCLG P1E Homelessness (quarterly) returns.

Homelessness

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many single vulnerable households were accepted as homeless in West Suffolk in each of the last five years.

Yvette Cooper: Information about local authorities' actions under homelessness legislation is collected quarterly, at local authority level. The parliamentary constituency of West Suffolk consists of Forest Heath DC and part of St Edmundsbury DC.
	Statistical returns distinguish the number of households accepted as eligible for assistance, and unintentionally homeless according to the main category of priority need the applicant falls within. The returns do not identify the number of people in the household. Information reported by Forest Heath and St Edmundsbury district councils, which covers the whole of their districts, in each year since 2001-02 is summarised in the following table:
	
		
			  Households accepted as eligible, unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category 
			   Total households  Of which 
			Containing dependent children  Containing an expectant mother  Applicant or family member vulnerable( 1) 
			  Forest Heath district council 
			 2001-02 43 31 5 7 
			 2002-03 45 31 8 6 
			 2003-04 57 37 9 11 
			 2004-05 55 44 11  
			 2005-06 55 31 13 11 
			  
			  St Edmundsbury district council 
			 2001-02 120 93 6 21 
			 2002-03 146 96 17 33 
			 2003-04 141 87 20 34 
			 2004-05 188 119 20 49 
			 2005-06 139 89 21 29 
			 (1 )As well as applicants, or members of their household, considered vulnerable, figures also include households homeless in an emergency, applicants aged 16 or 17 years old, and applicants formerly in care and aged 18 to 20 years old.  Source: DCLG P1E Homelessness returns (quarterly).

Housing

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many affordable homes for  (a) sale , (b) rent and  (c) shared ownership were (i) agreed, (ii) started and (iii) completed by each planning authority years under section 106 agreements in each of the last five.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 13 July 2006
	A table showing the number of dwellings built for  (a) sale,  (b) rent and  (c) shared ownership as well as planning permissions given as a result of section 106 agreements in each local authority in England, in each year from 2000-01 to 2004-05, has been placed in the Library of the House. Information on the number of building starts is not held centrally.

Housing

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many vacant homes there are in  (a) West Sussex and  (b) the area covered by the South East plan.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 13 July 2006
	As at 10 October 2005 there were 9,000 vacant dwellings in West Sussex and 100,400 in the South East. The area covered by the South East plan is the same as that covered by the South East region.
	These figures are for all vacant dwellings, including dwellings that have been empty for less than six months, some for less than one month.

Housing

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the Government's estimate is of the number of residential housing transactions that took place in England and Wales in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Yvette Cooper: Figures for the number of residential housing transactions by local authority areas based on data from the Land Registry are published on the DCLG website at: http://www.communities.gov.uk/pub/162/Table588_id1156162.xls.
	There were 1.02 million residential housing transactions in 2005 in England and Wales. In 2004 there were 1.23 million transactions. The number of transactions varies significantly from year to year due to a range of factors in the housing market.

Housing

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many houses were built in rural areas in each year since 2000.

Yvette Cooper: New build completions data are only available at local authority level therefore it is only possible to measure how many dwellings have been built in local authorities classified as rural by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) rural definition and local authority classification. This will include dwellings built in towns that are within a local authority classified as rural.
	The following number of dwellings were reported to have been built in local authorities classified as rural in England since 2000:
	
		
			  Number 
			  Rural classification  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Significant Rural 20,428 20,109 20,882 21,559 21,974 21,807 
			 Rural-50 19,996 18,651 18,482 18,898 18,407 20,692 
			 Rural-80 21,306 21,098 22,271 21,419 21,709 22,626 
			 Total 61,730 59,858 61,635 61,876 62,090 65,125 
		
	
	For further information on the DEFRA classification please see: http://statistics.defra.gov.uk/esg/rural_resd/rural_definition.asp

Housing

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the latest timetable is for producing guidance and draft regulations under the Housing Act 2004.

Yvette Cooper: The information requested is in the following table.
	
		
			  Housing Act 2004: Timetable For Guidance And Regulations 
			  Provision/Part  Proposed/Actual publication date of regulations and guidance 
			 Part 1 - Housing Conditions The HHSRS (England) Regulations 2005 (3208) were laid on 28 November and came into force on 6 April 2006. The HHSRS Operating Guidance and HHSRS Enforcement Guidance were published in February 2006. 
			 Parts 2, 3, 4 and 7- HMO and Selective Licensing The Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations, the Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Prescribed Descriptions (England) Order, the Licensing and Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation and Other Houses (Miscellaneous Provisions) (England) Regulations, the Selective Licensing of Houses (Specified Exemptions) (England) Order and the Housing (Interim Management Orders) (Prescribed Circumstances) (England) Order were laid on 22 February and came into force on 6 April. The Houses in Multiple Occupation (Specified Educational Establishments) (England) Regulations and the Housing (Approval of Codes of Management Practice) (Student Accommodation) (England) Order were laid on 16 March and came into force on 6 April 2006. The Residential Property Tribunal Procedures (England) Regulations and the Residential Property Tribunal (Fees) (England) Regulations were laid on 23 March and came into force on 13 April. Draft regulations relating to section 257 HMOs will be published for limited consultation soon. Explanatory information including leaflets and a dedicated website has been available since March. 
			 Part 4 - Empty Dwelling Management Orders The Housing (Empty Dwelling Management Orders) (Prescribed Exceptions and Requirements) (England) Order and The Housing (Management Orders and Empty Dwelling Management Orders) (Supplemental Provisions) (England) Regulations were laid on 22 February and came into force on 6 April 2006. Non-statutory guidance for local authorities on Empty Dwelling Management Orders will be published in July 2006. 
			 Part 5 - Home Information Packs The Home Information Pack Regulations, Procedural Guidance and Certification Scheme Business and Technical Standards documents were published on 14 June 2006. 
			 Part 6 - Right to Buy modifications The Residential Property Tribunal (Right to Buy Determinations) Procedure (England) Regulations were laid on 13 June 2005 and came into force on 4 July 2005. The Housing (Right to Buy)(Information to Secure Tenants) (England) Order was laid on 5 July 2005 and came into force on 26 July 2005. This Order provides guidance on the provision of information to secure tenants. The Housing (Right of First Refusal) (England) Regulations were laid on 20 July 2005 and came into force on 10 August 2005. The guidance booklet 'Your Right to Buy your Home' was revised together with the relevant Right to Buy forms. Guidance on landlords' discretion not to require repayment of discount, which was clarified by section 185 of the Act, was also issued in January 2005. 
			 Part 6 - Suspension of certain rights in connection with anti-social behaviour ASB measures in Part 6 of the Act commenced in June 2005. They include enabling local authorities to extend the period of introductory tenancies and withhold consent to mutual exchange on ASB grounds as well as measures to prevent tenants exercising the right to buy. Regulations regarding the form a review should take where a landlord decides to extend the period of an introductory tenancy came into force on 3 May 2006 
			 Part 6 - Gypsy and Traveller accommodation needs assessments Draft guidance was produced in February 2006 under Section 226 of the Housing Act, in respect of Section 225, relating to the assessment of the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers. This document is subject to further consultation. Definitive guidance will be published in the autumn of 2006. 
			 Part 6 - Tenant Deposit Protection In order to consider stakeholder concerns raised by that consultation, we are reviewing the commencement date and will confirm a date before Parliament rises

Housing

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much has been allocated for housing renewal in Morecambe since 1997.

Yvette Cooper: There are no specific funding allocation data available for Morecambe.
	Allocations to Lancaster city council of capital funding for housing purposes over the period 1997-98 to 2005-06 exceeds 30 million. This includes the major repairs allowance first introduced in 2001-02 specifically for the improvement of local authority stock alongside the Decent Homes standard which sets out minimum standards to be met by 2010.
	A further 1.9 million was allocated to Lancaster city council by the Regional Housing Board in 2006-07 under priority 1.3 of the Regional Housing Strategy, which seeks to provide a better housing mix in the region's costal towns i.e. Blackpool, Morecambe and Fleetwood. This amounted to an 11 per cent. on year increase in funding.
	In addition the North West Development Agency would have contributed towards housing renewal in Morecambe via the Single Regeneration Budget Programme.

Housing

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she has undertaken studies on the impact of planning gain supplement on the provision of affordable housing in rural areas.

Yvette Cooper: No such studies have been undertaken.
	The Government are currently considering responses to their consultation on the Planning-Gain Supplement (PGS), including on the issues of the PGS's impact on rural exception sites and the proposal to retain affordable housing delivery within the scope of planning obligations. Further announcements will be made towards the end of 2006.

Housing

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate her Department has made of the number of homes that have been purchased outright by occupiers of affordable housing on a shared ownership or homebuy basis under the Common and Leasehold Reform Act 2003 in  (a) rural and  (b) non-rural areas; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: No data are collected centrally on the number of homes that have been purchased outright, having been originally acquired through shared ownership, or homebuy.
	The Government are keen to expand home ownership through the new homebuy scheme. However, we recognise the need to ensure the longer term supply of affordable housing in rural areas which are subject to particular housing pressures.
	Therefore we will continue to allow housing associations to restrict the outright purchase (staircasing out) of shared ownership or homebuy properties on rural exception sites, where possible and appropriate under leasehold legislation. This flexibility, coupled with the additional safeguards within the homebuy scheme which allow providers to buy back properties when a purchaser who has staircased to full ownership wishes to move, should enable affordable housing to be retained where it is essential to do so and ensure delivery of the rural programme.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he expects the decent housing targets will be met by 2010 by local authorities which have transferred their stock  (a) to arm's length management organisations and  (b) by large scale voluntary transfers.

Yvette Cooper: I have been asked to reply.
	All local authorities currently on the ALMO and transfer programmes have undertaken to meet the Decent Homes target by 2010. However, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government announced on 7 June that where greater flexibility and allowing a little longer will allow a better result for the communityor where spreading the work out would deliver better value for money, we will negotiate later dates on a case-by-case basis. That said, we still expect 95 per cent. of social housing to be decent by 2010.

Housing

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many houses built in West Lancashire in rural settlements according to the rural exceptions policy have been built in each of the last five years.

Yvette Cooper: I have been asked to reply.
	Over the last five years 2000-01 to 2004-05, West Lancashire have reported that no new dwellings were built in their area in accordance with the rural exceptions policy.

Housing

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much rent surplus is available to each arm's length management organisation for reinvestment in 2006-07.

Yvette Cooper: The money that an Arm's Length Management Organisation (ALMO) receives is determined by the scope of its management agreement with the local authority and the agreed level of extra funding paid to the local authority for its ALMO to deliver decent homes. The money for the ALMO will come from the local authorities Housing Revenue Account (HRA).
	Those local authorities that operate Arm's Length Management Organisations receive specific ALMO allowances as part of their HRA annual subsidy determination. Assumed surpluses (and deficits) are calculated after all assumed income (including rent) and allowances have been taken into account.
	Surpluses are collected by the Department and together with a net contribution from the Exchequer of around 200 million a year, are paid to authorities with assumed deficits.

Infrastructure Funding

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations she has received from the South East England Development Agency with respect to infrastructure funding in  (a) the South East and  (b) Mid Sussex.

Angela Smith: The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has not received any specific representations from SEEDA with respect to infrastructure funding in  (a) the South East or  (b) Mid Sussex. However, SEEDA, the South East regional assembly and Government office for the south east recently submitted advice to Government, as requested in July 2005, on
	the proposed expenditure of regional transport funding allocations for the three years up to and including 2007-08, in line with the regional housing and economic development allocations already published, and indicative longer term planning assumptions up to 2015-16, across the three funding streams.
	The South East advice on this 'Regional Funding Allocation' included reference to a scheme in mid-Sussex and a proposal for a Regional Infrastructure Fund covering the whole of the South East; the document can be found on the SEEDA website at: http://www.seeda.co.uk/About_SEEDA/Board_Members/Board_Meetings/papers/Jan2006/Item7AnnexRFAJan06.doc.
	The recommended regional programme for transport schemes was accepted, including the A23 Hancross to Warninglid widening in Mid Sussex as an approved scheme in the indicative 2009-10 to 2015-16 list.

Infrastructure Funding

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what green infrastructure her Department proposes to allocate funding in Mid Sussex.

Angela Smith: It is for local planning authorities to determine what their specific infrastructure requirements are, and they should try to ensure that as far as possible these needs are met through the appropriate use of planning conditions and section 106 Agreements. We have provided advice on the use of these mechanisms in The Planning System: General Principles (Planning Policy Statement 1: Sustainable Development), in Circular 11/95 Use of conditions in Planning Permissions and Circular 05/05 Planning Obligations.
	An opportunity for local authorities to promote green infrastructure has been available through the implementation plan submitted with the draft Regional Spatial Strategy, the South East Plan. This was prepared by the South East Regional Assembly in conjunction with sub-regional partners and stakeholders and includes schedules of a wide range of infrastructure requirements with an indication of funding sources and reference to lead agencies. We understand that a revised implementation plan is being prepared by the Assembly for the Examination in Public later this year, where it will be discussed through the independent panel.
	My Department has made special arrangements to support 'green infrastructure' projects in the growth areas of Ashford, Aylesbury and Milton Keynes, through the growth area funds. The Government response to the Barker report outlined that 10 per cent. of growth area funds are to be used for green spaces. However, given that Mid Sussex is not designated as a growth area and no current new growth point proposals include the hon. Member's constituency, this specific funding is not available in Mid Sussex.

Listed Buildings

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will introduce legislation to increase the penalties for people who demolish listed buildings without planning consent; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 contains provision enabling allowing for fines for unauthorised works to a listed building. The maximum fine that can be imposed in the magistrates court is 20,000, whereas in the Crown court the fines are unlimited. It is open to the magistrates court to refer a case to the Crown court where it feels its sentencing powers are insufficient in relation to the seriousness of the offence committed.

Local Government Pension Scheme

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate the Government have made of the total cost of the Local Government Pension Scheme to local authorities  (a) including and  (b) excluding employee contributions in (i) 2005-06, (ii) 2006-07 and (iii) 2007-08.

Phil Woolas: Based on the findings of the 2004 actuarial valuation exercise it is estimated that the average cost to local authority employers will be (i) 12.5-13.5 per cent. of pensionable pay in 2005-06; (ii) 14-15 per cent. in 2006-07; (iii) 16-17 per cent. in 2007-08. On average employees will contribute 5.8 per cent. of pensionable payroll as well in each of these years.

M6 Link Road (Heysham)

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether there will be a public inquiry on planning for the Heysham M6 Link road.

Yvette Cooper: The planning application for the proposed Heysham M6 Link road is currently being considered by Lancashire county council.
	Should the council be minded to approve the application it will be referred to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government under the terms of a Direction (article 14 of the Town and Country Planning Act (General Development Procedure Order 1995)) issued on 8 March 2006.
	On receipt of the application from the council, consideration will be given to the possibility of calling it in for determination by the Secretary of State.

Midland Hotel Regeneration

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much in Government funds have been allocated to the Midland Hotel regeneration project.

Yvette Cooper: The total project cost was appraised at 7,310,089 of which NWDA is providing a grant of 4,052,850.
	English Heritage via Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) is providing 600,000. The remaining balance is being met by the private sector.

Planning

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what total value of section 106 agreement was agreed by each planning authority in each of the last five years; and how much of that sum is accounted for by funds allocated for  (a) housing,  (b) highways,  (c) residential facilities and  (d) schools.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 13 July 2006
	Data on section 106 agreements entered into by individual local authorities are not collected centrally.
	A recent study Valuing Planning Obligations in England conducted by Sheffield University and Halcrow Group consultants for the Department for Communities and Local Government estimated that the value of planning obligations agreed in England as a whole in 2003-4 was 1.9 billion. This can be broken down as follows:
	
		
			million 
			 Open space 116 
			 Transport and travel 280 
			 Community and leisure 111 
			 Education 118 
			 Other 65 
			 Agreements made directly with county councils (e.g. minerals and waste applications) 7 
			 Affordable housing 1,200

Planning

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent guidance her Department has issued on whether local authorities may require  (a) planning obligations and  (b) section 106 payments from a developer to pay for mitigation measures in relation to development in a Special Protection Area.

Yvette Cooper: Government's policy guidance on the use of planning obligations is contained in Circular 5/05 Planning Obligations. This does not refer to the use of planning obligations in Special Protection Areas.
	Government office for the south east in conjunction with English Nature are encouraging local planning authorities to develop 'mini-plans' of programmes of land or enhancement of existing land which could be used as mitigation against development around the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area in the short to medium term. Developers could contribute towards mitigation of their development by agreeing provision as set out in the local authority's mini-plan by way of a s106 legal agreement.

Planning

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent guidance the Government Office of the South East has given to councils in relation to special protection areas in the South East.

Yvette Cooper: Government Office for the South East in conjunction with English Nature have advised councils in the vicinity of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area that there is no moratorium on housing development in their areas and are encouraging local planning authorities to develop 'mini-plans' of programmes of land or enhancement of existing land which could be used as mitigation against development in the short to medium term.
	English Nature's Thames Basin Heaths SPA Project Delivery Plan, along with other research evidence, will be considered at the Examination in Public of the South East Plan in November. The plan is due to be adopted in 2008 and will set a regional spatial strategy for the South East region with strategic policies on the SPA which will inform local councils' local development frameworks.
	In addition the Government have commissioned further research to inform English Nature's considerations as well as planning considerations which will be concluded later this year.

Post Office Network Services

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what services  (a) her Department and  (b) its associated public bodies (i) make available and (ii) have made available in the last five years through the Post Office network; through how many outlets the service is or was made available; and how many relevant transactions were undertaken in each case in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not held centrally and cannot be supplied without incurring disproportionate cost.

Second Homes

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment her Department has made of the costs and benefits of second homes in rural areas.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 10 July 2006
	The Affordable Rural Housing Commission, which was set up by my Department and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, considered the impact of second homes on housing in rural areas. The Government are currently considering their response to the Commission's recommendations in this area.

Second Homes

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate her Department has made of the amount of money local authorities have allocated to affordable and social housing as a result of setting second home council tax discounts lower then 50 per cent.; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: In 2005-06 local authorities raised an additional 92 million (and 84 million in 2004-05) from the reduced council tax second homes' discount to spend on local priorities. The Department has made no estimate of the proportion of this additional revenue allocated by authorities to affordable and social housing.

Telecommunications

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government why her Department has re-issued the consultation paper on local loop unbundling valuations.

Phil Woolas: The Department has not re-issued the consultation paper on local loop unbundling. During a re-organisation and re-branding of the Department's website, information suggesting the consultation had been extended was inserted in error on the website.
	The error has now been corrected.

Thames Gateway

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what meetings officials in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister had during February 2006 with the Thames Gateway partnership; which officials were in attendance; which other organisations were represented at the meetings; and if she will publish the minutes of the meetings.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 14 July 2006
	I chaired the fourth meeting of the Thames Gateway Strategic partnership on 9 February 2006.
	The minutes of that meeting, showing the officials in attendance and other organisations represented, have been placed in the Library of the House.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will assess the risk to the public caused by the cracking of the graphite bricks in the core of the advanced gas-cooled reactors; what assessment he has made of  (a) the reasons for the cracking and  (b) whether the cracking will worsen; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: Graphite brick cracking is a well known life-limiting feature of British Energy's advanced gas-cooled reactors, and all of these reactors are undergoing the same degradation process at varying rates. All of the UK's nuclear power stations are subject to robust regulation by the independent regulator, HSE's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII), and I am advised on nuclear safety matters by the NII's Chief Inspector.
	I am satisfied that the NII would not allow any nuclear power station to continue to operate if there was an unacceptable risk to the general public.

Arms Trade

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to review the process by which his Department gathers and presents information about the quantities and countries of destination of arms brokered overseas by UK citizens and UK registered companies.

Malcolm Wicks: The Government's Annual and Quarterly Reports detail licences issued and refused for the brokering of controlled goods between third countries. While I have no plans to review the format, I always give careful consideration to any recommendation made by the Quadripartite Committee on Strategic Export Controls, concerning the Annual Report.

Arms Trade

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to review his Department's policy on monitoring the end use of licensed arms exports.

Malcolm Wicks: I have no plans to review the Department's policy on end-use monitoring. I refer the hon. Member to my response to the hon. Member for North Devon (Nick Harvey) on 8 June 2006,  Official Report, column 778W.

Arms Trade

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what transit and trans-shipment licences have been issued since 2003 for the movement of small arms and light weapons from Bosnia via the UK to other destinations; and what quantity of goods was allowed by each licence.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 13 July 2006
	No standard individual transhipment licences have been issued to UK companies wishing to transfer small arms and light weapons from Bosnia via the UK to other destinations since 2003. The Government publishes details of standard individual transhipment licences issued in its Annual and Quarterly Reports on Strategic Export Controls. The Government's annual reports are available from the Libraries of the House, and the quarterly reports from the DTI Export Control Organisation website at http://www.dti.gov.uk/europeantrade/strategic-export-control/index.html. We expect to publish the 2005 annual report in July 2006.

Arms Trade

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what import licences have been issued since 2003 for small arms and light weapons from Bosnia to the UK; and what quantity of goods was allowed by each licence;
	(2)  what import licences have been issued since 2003 for military goods from Bosnia to the UK; and what type of goods were imported under each licence.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answers 13 July 2006
	Details of import licences issued from 1 January 2005 that would allow the import from Bosnia of small arms and light weapons (as defined by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) are listed. Similar lists for 2003 and 2004 could only be drawn up in the time available at disproportionate cost.
	The list is divided into those licences that specify Bosnia as a country of consignment (BA) and those that could be used for importing weapons from any country including Bosnia (AY).
	The Department does not issue import licences for military equipment other than firearms and ammunition falling to Chapter 93 of H M Revenue and Customs' Integrated Tariff of the United Kingdom and not imported by the Ministry of Defence. No such licences in respect of Bosnia other than those listed have been issued since 1 January 2005.
	
		
			  Import Licences Issued from 1 January 2005 to date: 
			 AY 4 x DLASK Arms M4 5.56 calibre 
			 AY 60 x pistols 
			 AY 50 x handguns/machine pistols/silencers 
			 AY 45 x shotguns/5 x silencers 
			 AY 45 x assorted prohibited weapons 
			 AY 500 x assorted prohibited firearms and component parts 
			 AY 6,380 x assorted prohibited firearms 
			 AY 358,725 x assorted prohibited weapons 
			 AY 500 x weapons and ammunition -under Sections 5(l)(c) and 5(1 A)(b) of the Firearms Act 1968, as amended 
			 AY 5,000 x automatic weapons of all types 
			 AY 1,000 x semi-automatic rifles and carbines 
			 AY 200 x short barrelled shotguns 
			 AY 50 x rocket launchers, grenade launchers or mortars 
			 AY 2,000 x handguns 
			 AY 12 x weapons under Section 5(l)(a)/12 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ab)/12 x weapons under Section 5(l)(aba) 
			 AY 100,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(a)/50,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ab) 
			 AY 500 x assorted prohibited firearms and component parts 
			 AY 47,800 x assorted prohibited firearms and component parts 
			 AY 40 x handguns/5 x machine pistols/5 x silencers 
			 AY 45 x shotguns/5 x silencers 
			 AY No more than 45 in total x sub machine guns, light machine guns, medium machine guns, heavy machine guns, automatic cannons, assault rifles/carbines, self-loading rifles, self-loading rifles/carbines, automatic rifles/carbines, pump action rifles/carbines 
			 AY Unlimited assorted prohibited firearms 
			 AY 6,470 x assorted prohibited firearms 
			 AY 100 x handguns 
			 AY 358,725 x assorted prohibited weapons 
			 AY 500 x automatic weapons of all types 
			 AY 1,000 x semi-automatic rifles and carbines 
			 AY 200 x short barrelled shotguns 
			 AY 50 x rocket launchers, grenade launchers or mortars 
			 AY 2,000 x handguns 
			 AY 36 x assorted prohibited weapons 
			 AY 20,450 x assorted prohibited weapons 
			 AY 47,800 x assorted prohibited firearms and component parts 
			 AY 1,000 x assorted prohibited firearms and component parts 
			 AY No more than 13,000 in total x weapons under Sections 5(l)(a) and 5(l)(ab), (ac)  (ae)/l,300 x weapons under Section 5(l)(b)/500 x weapons under Section 5(l)(aba)/25,000 x weapons under Sections 5(l)(c), 5(1 A)(d) and 5(lA)(e) 
			 AY 10 x .223 semi-automatic rifles/carbines 
			 AY 110 x lightweight multiple launchers/10 x vehicle missile launchers/75 x automatic, semi-automatic rifles, carbines/25 machine guns/15 grenade launchers/2 x drill anti-tank weapons/500 x shoulder launch aiming units 
			 AY No more than 500 in total x prohibited weapons and prohibited ammunition 
			 AY 5,000 x automatic weapons of all types 
			 AY 1,000 x semi-automatic (self-loading) rifles and carbines of all types 
			 AY 200 x short barrelled shotguns fed by slide, pump or lever action or by self loading mechanism 
			 AY 50 x rocket launchers, grenade launchers or mortars of all types. 
			 AY 2,000 x large and small calibre pistols and revolvers (handguns) of all types 
			 AY 100 x pistols under Section 5(l)(aba) 
			 AY No more than 10,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(a)/600 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ab)/6,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(aba)/100 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ac)/3,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ae) 
			 AY No more than 10,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(a)/600 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ab)/6,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(aba)/100 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ac)/3,000 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ae) 
			 AY No more than 75 x medium machine guns, sub machine guns, light machine guns, heavy machine guns, automatic cannon, cannon, assault rifles/carbines, self-loading rifles/carbines, automatic rifles/carbines, pump action rifles/carbines 
			 AY 60 x handguns (calibre. 2mm-27mm/. 172-1) 
			 AY 45 x shotguns (pump, revolver, semi-automatic, automatic) 
			 AY No more than 45 in total x shotguns of the following types: pump, revolver, semi-automatic, automatic 
			 AY No more than 75 in total x medium machine guns, sub machine guns, light machine guns, heavy machine guns, automatic cannon, cannon, assault rifles/carbines, self-loading rifles/carbines, automatic rifles/carbines, pump action rifles/carbines 
			 AY 10 x Derringer, 30 x handgun, 5 x machine pistol 
			 AY 12 x weapons under Section 5(l)(a)/12 x weapons under Section 5(l)(ab)/12 x weapons under Section 5(l)(aba) 
			 BA 9,480 x assorted automatic rifles and machine guns 
			 BA 2,000 x machine guns, assault rifles and sub machine guns 
			 BA 1,500 x machine guns, assault rifles and sub machine guns 
			 BA 2,000 x machine guns, assault rifles and sub machine guns 
			 BA 500 x rocket launchers/3000 mortars 
			 BA 40,000 x various assault rifles 
			 BA 10,000 x various machine guns/2,500 various sub machine guns 
			 BA 100 x anti aircraft systems 
			 BA 100 x rocket launchers 
			 BA 5,000 component parts under Section 5(l)(a) 
			 BA 20,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 B A 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,500 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x assault rifles 
			 BA 1,000 x assault rifles 
			 BA 2,000 x AK47 assault rifles 
			 BA 3,000 x machine guns 
			 BA 20,000 x AK47 assault rifles

Coal Health (Compensation)

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many coal health  (a) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and  (b) vibration white finger cases have been submitted for deceased claims by Berefords Solicitors in (i) Wales and (ii) Scotland; and how many of each have been refused.

Malcolm Wicks: The figures requested for deceased claims submitted by Beresfords solicitors are set out in the following table:
	
		
			   Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease  Vibration White Finger 
			   Wales  Scotland  Wales  Scotland 
			 Deceased claims submitted 6,839 3,006 11 12 
			 Denials made 525 412 5 2

Coal Health (Compensation)

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many meetings have taken place between his officials and UDM Vendside on coal health compensation since June 2005.

Malcolm Wicks: Three operational meetings have taken place since June 2005 between officials and representatives of the UDM. Two of these related to the vibration white finger scheme and the third to the respiratory disease scheme.

Company Law Reform Bill

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what his definition is of a proper purpose for inspection of a company register of members under the provisions of the Company Law Reform Bill.

Margaret Hodge: The Bill does not define what is a proper purpose.

Company Law Reform Bill

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry under what circumstances a company could refuse to disclose information on its members under the provisions of the Company Law Reform Bill.

Margaret Hodge: Under clause 116 of the Bill, a request to inspect or to be provided with a copy of a company's register of members must include the purpose for which the information is to be used. The company must either meet the request within five working days or apply to a court. The court will direct the company not to comply with the request if it is satisfied that it is not sought for a proper purpose.

Electricity Transmission

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what quantity of carbon dioxide emissions were attributable to electricity transmission and distribution losses in each of the last five years.

Malcolm Wicks: Estimated losses through the electricity transmission and distribution networks for the period 1999 to 2003 were as follows:
	
		
			   GWh 
			 1999 28298 
			 2000 29649 
			 2001 30902 
			 2002 29890 
			 2003 29862 
		
	
	Using the average carbon emission factor for each year provides the following estimates for the carbon emissions associated with these losses. These estimates are based on the average emissions factor for electricity generation in each of these years, which takes account of the mix between coal, gas and other forms of generation in those years.
	
		
			   Million tonnes of carbon 
			 1999 3.28 
			 2000 3.67 
			 2001 3.95 
			 2002 3.72 
			 2003 3.83

Energy

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in which year the Government expect the UK to be a net importer of energy.

Malcolm Wicks: Data on net imports of primary fuel are published in the annual Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics. Table 1.1.3 in the 2005 edition shows that, having been a net exporter of primary energy since 1993, the UK became a net importer of primary energy in 2004.

Energy

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry why the minutes of the latest meeting of the advisory board on sustainable energy policy have not yet been placed in the public domain.

Malcolm Wicks: The minutes of the Sustainable Energy Policy Advisory Board (SEPAB) have now been published on the DTI website as usual. Publication was held back until the Energy Review conclusions had been announced to Parliament.

Energy

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry from which  (a) ministerial colleagues,  (b) hon. Members and  (c) members of the House of Lords he received a submission to the Energy Review; and what criteria were adopted in deciding which of these submissions were posted on the Energy Review pages of his departmental web site.

Malcolm Wicks: All responses to the Energy Review consultation exercise, which closed on 14 April 2006, have been posted on the DTI website at http://www. dti.gov.uk/energy/review/consultation-submissions/page27883.html.

Energy

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many applications for  (a) gas and  (b) electricity were declined by each energy supplier in (i) each region of England, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Wales in the last full year for which figures are available.

Malcolm Wicks: Ofgem does not collect data about refusal to supply.
	Condition 32 of the standard gas and electricity supply licences requires suppliers to offer terms at a domestic customer's request. There are a number of exclusions within these conditions. Complaints about refusal to supply may be made to the statutory gas and electricity consumer body, Energywatch. Energywatch can refer matters to the industry regulator, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) where it believes Ofgem may be able to use its power of licence enforcement.

Energy

Mohammad Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the role of the energy supply ombudsman.

Malcolm Wicks: In July 2005, the industry regulator, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM) required gas and electricity suppliers to establish an independent ombudsman scheme to deal with billing disputes that had not been satisfactorily resolved under standard complaints procedures. The suppliers have now established the Energy Supply Ombudsman scheme, which was launched on 1 July 2006. The Ombudsman will handle both billing and transfer disputes, can reach decisions that are binding on suppliers and may award compensation of up to 5,000 to customers. The scheme is additional to the statutory arrangements governing the investigation of customer complaints, which continue to operate.

Energy

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will establish an inquiry into  (a) wholesale energy prices,  (b) the level of competition in the UK energy market and  (c) the impact of energy prices on manufacturing industry.

Malcolm Wicks: Despite sustained benefits from liberalised energy markets over the past decade, the Government fully appreciate that high energy prices do create problems for the competitiveness of industry, and take very seriously the potential loss of jobs and investment. The Government are leaving no stone unturned, working closely with industry, to find solutions and reduce the impact. The new Business Energy Forum, co-chaired by the Secretary of State and Richard Lambert of the CBI, met for the first time on 5 July and is monitoring this work and looking at other strategic energy issues impacting on business. Higher energy prices in the UK reflect higher global prices, caused by rising demand and supply constraints (for oil and gas), the lack of EU energy market liberalisation, and domestic factors, such as the tight winter supply demand balance in the UK gas market.
	The importance of the Government's activity in pushing for European energy market liberalisation was highlighted in a Global Insight report in 2005. The report estimated that the lack of effective liberalisation and the dominance of oil-linked long-term supply contracts in Europe would cost UK industrial consumers of gas some 2.6 billion over the following year. Ofgem analysis suggests that the cost to UK gas consumers of Interconnector flows not always being in line with price signals during the last winter was 1.5 billion and would cost 3 billion if repeated during the coming winter. The European Commission has been active in reviewing competition in gas and electricity markets.
	During the past two years there have been several investigations and reports into competition in UK gas and electricity markets. These include the Ofgem gas price probe, and two inquiries from the Trade and Industry Select Committee. The Ofgem gas price probe found no evidence of anti-competitive behaviour in the UK gas market. More recently, Ofgem published a Domestic Retail Market Report, which concluded that, competition remains effective and vigorous in all segments of the domestic energy market. Independent research by Oxera concluded that in 2004 the UK had the most competitive electricity and gas markets in the EU and G7 (available at www.dti.gov.uk/files/file28425.pdf).

Enterprise Insight

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the level of Government funding for Enterprise Insight is for 2006-07; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The level of Government funding for Enterprise Insight in 2006-07 is 5 million.
	This support enables Enterprise Insight to continue developing and running the highly successful 'Make Your Mark' campaign. The campaign is aimed at people aged between 14 and 30 and encourages them to be enterprising in the broadest sense.
	Enterprise Week is the focal point of the campaign. Last year saw 408,000 people from all over the UK attend 2,215 events, run by 722 organisations helped by 3,874 businesses. It is anticipated that these already impressive results will be bettered during Enterprise Week 2006, which Enterprise Insight will run from 13-19 November.
	The funding will also support the development of new Local Enterprise Campaign Hubs in some of the country's most deprived and under-performing areas. In addition, the funding will support the development of partnerships to run campaigns in specific industry sectors, emphasising the role of enterprise in the successful start up and growth of companies.

Enterprise Insight

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he last met representatives of Enterprise Insight; what the outcome was of the meeting; and what plans he has to hold further meetings with this organisation.

Margaret Hodge: As Minister for Industry and the Regions with responsibility for the Small Business Service, I met Enterprise Insight on 18 May.
	The outcome of my meeting was a reaffirmed commitment that the Department will support the development and running of the 'Make Your Mark' campaign; and, to Ministerial participation in key events during the campaign's flagship annual initiative of 'Enterprise Week', which this year will run from 13-19 November.
	Further meetings with Enterprise Insight will be scheduled as the year progresses.

Gas Appliances

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps his Department has taken in the past 10 years to encourage research and development of gas appliances.

Malcolm Wicks: This is a matter for manufacturers of gas appliances, which is a competitive commercial activity.

Global Oil Production

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in which year the Government expect  (a) global conventional oil production and  (b) global total oil production to peak; and what the Government expect to be the level of peak global oil production.

Malcolm Wicks: The Government consider that the world's oil resources are sufficient to prevent global total oil production peaking before 2030, by which time the International Energy Agency's reference case scenario in its 2005 World Energy Outlook shows global oil demand reaching 115.4 million barrel per day, nearly 40 per cent. higher than current levels. The exact levels and years of the peaks in global conventional and total oil production will depend on assumptions about a number of factors, including the rate of global oil demand growth, the rate of investment in the global oil sector, and technological developments in finding and producing oil.
	Market mechanisms will ration the remaining global supplies of oil and provide the incentive for a shift to alternative sources of energy. This process needs to be supported by Governments. The UK Government are already putting in place policies that will help ease the UK economy away from power supplied primarily through fossil fuels and is also promoting international efforts, for example through the G8 Gleneagles Plan of Action, to develop cleaner energy technologies and promote energy efficiency.

Home Heat Helpline

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  how many calls the Home Heat Helpline has received in each month since its launch;
	(2)  whether the Home Heat Helpline refers callers to  (a) Energywatch,  (b) local energy efficiency advice centres and  (c) the Energy Savings Trust;
	(3)  how many people have  (a) received benefit entitlement checks after contacting the Home Heat Helpline and  (b) been identified as eligible for a benefit following a benefit entitlement check.

Malcolm Wicks: The Home Heat Helpline was established by the Energy Retail Association on behalf of gas and electricity suppliers. The Government supported the introduction of the Helpline, but is not involved in its funding or its administration. Questions about its operations are, therefore, entirely for the Association.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas Market

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of households in  (a) rural areas and  (b) non-rural areas using cylinders of a smaller capacity than those investigated by the Competition Commission in their recent inquiry into the domestic bulk liquefied petroleum gas market; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: No such estimates have been made, as the successful functioning of consumer markets, and market investigations when required, are matters for the independent competition authorities rather than for the Government.

Manufacturing Forum

Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry who the members of the Manufacturing Forum are; and what its remit is.

Margaret Hodge: The membership of the Manufacturing Forum is:
	Kevin Smith CBE, Chief Executive, GKN plc
	Margaret Hodge MBE MP, Minister of State for Industry and the Regions
	Ian McCafferty, Chief Economic Adviser, CBI
	Nick Brayshaw, Chairman, CBI Manufacturing Council
	Martin Temple CBE, Director General, EEF
	Harald Krueger, Plant Director, BMW Hams Hall
	Dr. Bryan Jackson OBE, Chair, East Midlands Development Agency
	Allan Cook, Chief Executive, Cobham plc
	Paul Lester, Chief Executive, VT Group
	Steve Musgrave, Vice President Technical Operations, GSK plc
	Dawn Gibbins MBE, Chairman, Flowcrete Group plc
	John Wall, General Secretary, Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions
	Peter Booth, National Organiser, TG
	Phil Davies, National Secretary, GMB
	Tim Page , Senior Policy Officer, TUC
	Jim Brathwaite CBE, Chair, South East England Regional Development Agency
	Professor Mike Gregory CBE, Head, Institute for Manufacturing, University of Cambridge
	Simon Edmonds, Director, Business Relations, DTI
	Vicky Pryce, Chief Economic Adviser, DTI
	Eleanor Mack, Head of Enterprise Team, HM Treasury
	Greg Dyche, Deputy Director, Skills Group, Department for Education and Skills
	Emily Thomas, Special Adviser, DTI
	Geoffrey Norris, Senior Policy Adviser, Prime Minister's Office.
	 Remit of Manufacturing Forum
	The Manufacturing Forum is jointly chaired by Government and Industry and was established following the review of the Government's Manufacturing Strategy in 2004. The Forum facilitates ongoing advice from key industry partners to ensure the effective implementation and evolution of the Government's Manufacturing Strategy.

Manufacturing Media Centre

Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what financial or other contribution his Department and its agencies are making towards the establishment of a Manufacturing Media Centre (MMC); what estimate he has made of the potential total cost of the MMC in each of its first three years; and when he expects the centre to be fully operational.

Margaret Hodge: The Manufacturing Forum Secretariat, which includes officials from the DTI, is working with stakeholders to establish the Manufacturing Media Centre (MMC). The MMC will cost approximately 300,000 per annum and will be funded by contributions from the manufacturing community, mainly from industry. It is planned to launch the MMC by the end of 2006.

Minimum Wage

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people have received the minimum wage in West Lancashire in each year since it was introduced.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Data at the parliamentary constituency level are not available.
	However, the DTI estimates that around 120,000 in the North West stood to benefit from the October 2005 uprating of the national minimum wage.

Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the potential for a conflict of interest to arise from a board member of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority also being a board member of the Environment Agency.

Malcolm Wicks: Matters such as the potential for conflicts of interest arising as a consequence of membership of the Boards of public bodies are taken fully into account during the recruitment process. The DTI press release of 13 October 2004 announcing the appointment of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's non executive Board members provided detail on their other appointments and interests. In addition, public bodies maintain records of Board members' interests.

Nuclear Power

James McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received from the Scottish Executive regarding the Energy Review with particular reference to the planning system for future nuclear power stations.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 3 July 2006
	The Government have worked closely with the Devolved Administrations throughout the Energy Review on all the areas of devolved responsibility, including planning.
	The Government's report on the Review, Our Energy Challenge, was released on 11 July 2006. It is available on the DTI website at:
	www.dti.gov.uk/energy/review

Nuclear Power

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 4 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 910-11W, on nuclear power, what the total operating budget was for his Department's Office for Civil Nuclear Security in each financial year since 2001-02.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 14 July 2006
	The information requested is as follows.
	
		
			  OCNS Operating costs 
			   000 
			 2001-02 1,590 
			 2002-03 1,814 
			 2003-04 2,216 
			 2004-05 2,332 
			 2005-06 2,447 
		
	
	The answer of 4 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 910-11W referred to the charges made to recover the costs of regulatory services from those who received them. The figures in the table are total operating costs. The difference between total operating costs and fees charged (as stated on 4 July) is the net funding provided by DTI to cover the cost of work that falls outside the scope of The Nuclear Industries Security (Fees) Regulations and which therefore cannot be charged to industry. Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS) activity covered by net funding includes, for example, policy advice within government, work on proposed future legislation and international work.

Nuclear Safety Directorate

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many warnings have been issued by the Nuclear Safety Directorate to nuclear plants owned or operated by British Energy in each of the last five years.

Malcolm Wicks: Warnings are not a feature of the regulatory regime enforced by HSE's Nuclear Safety Directorate. However, should there be a need for enforcement action enforcement notices are issued accordingly.
	I am informed that HSE has issued 11 improvement notices to British Energy during the last five years.

Oil Imports

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the Government's latest estimate is of when the UK will become a net importer of oil.

Malcolm Wicks: In 2005 the UK became a net importer of crude oil (including Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs) and feedstocks), on an annual volume basis, for the first time since 1992. However, net exports of refined oil products meant that the UK remained a net exporter of overall oil (crude, NGLs, feedstocks, and refined products). Details are given in tables 3.1 and 3.2 of the June 2006 version of UK Energy Trends available at http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/trends/index.html.
	With the large Buzzard Field due on-stream in late 2006, the UK should return to being a net exporter of crude oil (including NGLs and feedstocks) by 2007 before becoming a net importer on a sustained annual basis by 2010.

Petrol Prices

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent assessment he has made of petrol prices.

Malcolm Wicks: Information on the typical UK monthly retail price of petrol is given in Table 4.1.1 of the DTI's Quarterly Energy Prices publication (http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/prices/index.html).
	The rise in petrol prices since the start of the year reflects increases in the price of crude oil on the global market. In response, the Government are continuing to promote international efforts to improve the functioning of the global oil market and to tackle market inefficiencies that contribute to high and volatile crude oil prices.

Peugeot Plant (Ryton)

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the progress of the talks that started on 4 July on the Peugeot car manufacturing operation in Ryton.

Margaret Hodge: The Government are aware that discussions are on-going between Peugeot Citroen and the trade unions regarding the company's announcement that its Ryton plant will close, but the conduct of those discussions is a matter between the company and the unions.
	The Government have made clear to Peugeot Citroen the importance of engaging in meaningful consultation with the trade unions, consistent with their obligations under information and consultation legislation, including giving due consideration to the unions' alternative proposals for the future of Ryton.

Power Stations

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps are being taken to maximise power station efficiency.

Malcolm Wicks: The Government have put in place a competitive market-based framework that incentivises generators to maximise their productivity. The conclusions of the 2006 Energy Review set out proposals for further improvements to the generation market so as better to achieve the 2003 Energy White Paper goals.

Power Stations

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans there are to build more gas-fired power stations in the next five years.

Malcolm Wicks: Details of planned major new investments in electricity generation, including gas-fired power stations, can be found in table 2 of the annex to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's second report to Parliament on security of gas and electricity supply in Great Britain. The report was published on 11 July and can be found both in the Libraries of the House and on the Department's website at http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file31630.pdf.
	It is important to note that approval of the consents listed in the table does not guarantee that all, or indeed any, of these projects will actually be built.

Power Stations

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research he has evaluated on the efficiency of power stations.

Malcolm Wicks: Table 5.10 of the latest Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics (http://www.dti. gov.uk/energy/statistics/source/electricity/pagel8527. html) lists the average thermal efficiencies of large power stations by fuel type. The technical and economic efficiencies of power stations are a commercial matter for generators.

Renewable Energy

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of  (a) energy and  (b) electricity in (i) the UK and (ii) each region was supplied from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Malcolm Wicks: In the United Kingdom in 2004 1.8 per cent. of inland consumption of primary fuels and equivalents for energy use and 3.6 per cent. of electricity generation was from renewable sources.
	The amount of electricity generated from renewable sources in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and each region of England in 2004 was as follows:
	
		
			   GWh 
			 England 7,111.9 
			 East Midlands 625.7 
			 East 1,583.4 
			 North East 417.0 
			 North West 1,014.8 
			 London 389.9 
			 South East 1,209.5 
			 South West 518.2 
			 West Midlands 651.0 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 702.6 
			   
			 Wales 1,044.0 
			 Scotland 5,853.6 
			 Northern Ireland 148.5 
			   
			 Other sites(1) 9.4 
			 Total 14,167.1 
			 Solar photovoltaics 4.0 
			 UK total 14,171.1 
			 (1) Other sites are sites that have not been attributed to a region so that data related to individual companies are not disclosed when the breakdown by technology is shown in the source table.  Source: DTI Energy Trends, September 2005 Page 24. 
		
	
	Similar statistics for the generation from all sources are not available for the regions of England since this would disclose data for individual companies given to the Department in confidence so percentages for the English regions cannot be calculated. However, percentages for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England as a whole are as follows:
	
		
			   Percentage 
			 Scotland 11.48 
			 Wales 2.96 
			 Northern Ireland 2.00 
			 England 2.36 
			 United Kingdom 3.58 
			  Source: DTI Energy Trends December 2005, page 44. 
		
	
	Regional data covering all energy use are produced only for consumption and not for supply. This is because energy produced in one part of the UK may not be consumed in the same part of the UK given that we have national transmissions systems for gas and electricity, and coal and oil products are distributed from mines and refineries to all parts of the country.

Renewable Energy

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many wind farms there are in England; and how many are planned to be built in the next five years.

Malcolm Wicks: There are currently 54 wind farms in England, of those three are offshore with a capacity of nearly 154 MW and 51 are onshore with a capacity of nearly 246 MW.
	It is not possible to say how many wind farms, on or offshore are planned to be built in the next five years as a number of complex and, as yet, unseen, factors may come into play. However, the following information has been obtained from the British Wind Energy Association:
	
		
			  Wind farms 
			   Number 
			 Currently under construction Seven onshore wind farms with a capacity of 79.5 MW and one offshore wind farm with a capacity of 90 MW. 
			 Consented projects 35 onshore wind farms with a capacity of 537.70 MW and four offshore wind farms with a capacity of 486 MW. 
			 Projects in planning 51 onshore wind farms with a capacity of 938 MW and 10 offshore wind farms with a capacity of 4283 MW.

Royal Mail

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions have taken place between Ministers and officials from his Department and Royal Mail on shares being made available in Royal Mail.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Royal Mail has submitted proposals on an employee share ownership scheme and these proposals are currently under consideration by the Department. Ministers and officials meet Royal Mail representatives on a regular basis and have discussed these proposals with them. No decisions have been made on whether to introduce a share scheme.

South East England Development Agency

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the annual per capita expenditure of the South East England Development Agency has been in each year since its inception in  (a) each county and  (b) each unitary authority in the South East of England.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 10 July 2006
	The tables show the South East England Development Agency's (SEEDA) annual spend from 2003 onwards, broken down to a sub regional level.
	SEEDA does not provide expenditure breakdowns on the basis of all counties and unitary authorities within the region.
	Before the adoption of their current financial records system in 2003, expenditure by specific geographical or administrative areas was not recorded and it is therefore not possible to produce a disaggregated account of SEEDA spend prior to that time.
	Much of SEEDA's spend is allocated across administrative boundaries, and this cannot be disaggregated to local authority boundaries levels.
	
		
			  Sub-region  Spend 2003-04 ()  Programme expenditure(percentage of annual budget)  Expenditure per head () 
			 Berkshire Unitary Authorities 4,626,483.75 3.67 5.78 
			 Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes 1,614,422.01 1.28 3.37 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 25,399,943.64 20.12 34.32 
			 Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton and Isle of Wight 40,665,609.35 32.21 22.88 
			 Kent and Medway 25,244,668.59 20.00 15.99 
			 Oxfordshire 5,118,297.72 4.05 6.30 
			 Surrey 760,227.82 0.60 0.72 
			 West Sussex 3,248,602.91 2.57 4.31 
			 Regionwide and Cross Region 19,554,744.20 15.49 n/a 
			 Total 126,233,000.00 100.00  
		
	
	
		
			  Sub-region  Spend 2004-05 ()  Programme expenditure(percentage of annual budget)  Expenditure per head () 
			 Berkshire Unitary Authorities 2,230,595.85 2.02 2.79 
			 Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes 2,877,112.59 2.60 6.01 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 19,938,380.28 18.04 26.94 
			 Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton and Isle of Wight 19,240,442.98 17.41 10.83 
			 Kent and Medway 39,055,557.44 35.34 24.73 
			 Oxfordshire 4,399,289.72 3.98 5.41 
			 Surrey 836,594.35 0.76 0.79 
			 West Sussex 2,673,723.77 2.42 3.55 
			 Regionwide and Cross Region 19,256,303.04 17.43 n/a 
			 Total 110,508,000.00 100.00  
		
	
	
		
			  Sub-region  Spend 2005-06 ()  Programme expenditure(percentage of annual budget)  Expenditure per head () 
			 Berkshire Unitary Authorities 4247471.04 2.68 5.31 
			 Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes 1,867,303.21 1.18 3.90 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 22,174,844.97 13.98 29.96 
			 Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton and Isle of Wight 38,236,206.41 24.10 21.52 
			 Kent and Medway 36,545,375.53 23.04 23.14 
			 Oxfordshire 5,564,708.01 3.51 6.85 
			 Surrey 4,376,371.19 2.76 4.13 
			 West Sussex 8,630,872.87 5.44 11.45 
			 Regionwide and Cross Region 36,996,847.49 23.32 n/a 
			 Total 158,640,000.72 100.00  
			  Note: Please note per capita expenditure has been calculated using population figures from the Rural Urban Spreadsheet tool (based on 2001 census).

Spam E-mails

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he  (a) is taking and  (b) plans to take to reduce the number of spam e-mails originating from abroad received by people in the UK.

Margaret Hodge: The Government introduced statutory controls on spam emails by means of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003, which were enacted on 11 December 2003. The regulations provide a first line of defence against spam originating in the EU where the recipient has no knowledge of the advertiser of the products being marketed. The regulations require that spam must not be sent to an individual subscriber without prior permission or unless there is a previous relationship between the parties. The regulations can be enforced against an offending company or individual anywhere in the EU. There is regular contact between my Department, the Department for Constitutional Affairs and the Information Commissioner's Office on the operation of these regulations.
	The Government recognise that most spam does not come from the UK and have therefore extensively promoted international co-operation. A Memorandum of Understanding was agreed on 2 July 2004 between the enforcement authorities of the United Kingdom, United States and Australia, to reduce the problem by working together to investigate those sending spam. The UK also plays a leading role in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)'s Anti Spam Task Force and other multilateral initiatives. In late 2004, the UK launched the world's first and only anti-spam enforcement network, the London Action Plan, which now spans five continents and includes authorities and industry from countries particularly affected by this issue, such as Nigeria, China and India.
	The end user has a role to play in acting to avoid being a target for those sending spam, as well as acting to filter spam. Information has been made available to the public and to business by the DTI, the Information Commissioner's Office, the Office of Fair Trading as well as a number of sites provided by service and software providers. These messages have been reinforced by the Get Safe Online initiative launched on 27 October 2005. This is an initiative between Government and Industry to help individuals and businesses protect themselves against internet threats, including spam.
	Our response to the problem of spam continues to develop. I have taken careful note of the views of the Information Commissioner's Office on the powers available to him, and DTI officials are working with the Information Commissioner's Office on this matter. The Government are actively considering whether to revise the relevant legislation. DTI officials have a continuing dialogue with internet service providers regarding steps that can be taken to reduce spam. We also continue our efforts to achieve greater international co-operation.

Strikes

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many strikes there were in the last 12 months; and what the lowest number of strikes was during any consecutive 12 month period between May 1997 and May 2002.

Jim Fitzpatrick: In the 12 months to May 2006, there were 131 stoppages in the UK, compared to 121 stoppages in the 12 months to May 2005.
	Between May 1997 and May 2002, the lowest number of stoppages in any 12 consecutive months was 189, in the 12 months to August 1999.

Structural Funds

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will take steps to ensure that the North West is a priority for the allocation of structural funds.

Margaret Hodge: As set out in the written statement to Parliament of 20 December 2005,  Official Report, columns 203-06WS. Merseyside will receive phasing-in funding under the Regional Competitiveness and Employment Objective for 2007-13. This will amount to approximately one-third of its allocation as an Objective 1 area over the period 2000-06.
	The rest of the North West, along with the other areas of the UK not eligible for Convergence funding (the successor to Objective 1) under the next round of Structural Funds from 2007-13, will be eligible for support under the Regional Competitiveness and Employment Objective. These areas will receive a total of approximately 6.2 billion in Structural Funds over this period.
	The Department of Trade and Industry has recently carried out a public consultation on a draft National Strategic Reference Framework for future Structural Funds spending. As part of the consultation, we sought stakeholders' views on the methodology for allocating part of the UK's Competitiveness funds. In reaching a final decision on this issue, the Government will, of course, want to take full account of the needs of the North West and all other eligible regions.

Sustainability

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding he plans to allocate to professional bodies for the promotion of the principles of sustainable consumption and development to their members in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
	In October 2005, Defra funded Forum for the Future to engage with a range of professional bodies on sustainability issues. The project, Professions in Partnership for Sustainability, will work with professional bodies to embed sustainable competencies into their professional standards.
	The project is worth up to 75,000 and will last until the end of the financial year 2006-07. No decisions have been taken yet on funding beyond the end of 2006-07.

Television Licences

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the effects on pensioners of the discontinuation of the sale of television licences in post offices.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The decision to withdraw the purchase of TV licences from post offices was a commercial one made by the BBC which has a duty to TV licence holders to achieve value for money with its licence fee income. Although customers will not be able to pay for their TV licences at post offices after 31 July, they will be able to purchase TV licences by direct debit, online or at over 15,000 'Paypoint' facilities situated around the country in local newsagents, convenience stores, supermarkets, and petrol stations.

Waste Disposal

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the meeting of EU Member States in Brussels on 26 June regarding the Restrictions on Hazardous Substances and Waste Electrical Equipment Directives; and whether a decision was reached as to whether pipe organs would fall within the scope of these Directives.

Malcolm Wicks: It was certainly never envisaged that these directives would apply to church and other pipe organs, although there was some legal uncertainty in the final text.
	Following the meeting held in Brussels on 26 June, the European Commission has clarified that pipe organs are outside the scope of the new rules.
	I am, therefore, very pleased to confirm that the legal uncertainties have now been resolved and pipe organs are considered to be clearly outside the scope of the restriction of hazardous substances (RoHS) and waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) directives.

Zimbabwe

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on UK-Zimbabwe trade relations

Ian McCartney: There has been a substantial fall in UK-Zimbabwe trade in recent years. In 2000, UK and Zimbabwe two-way trade amounted to 143 million. Imports from Zimbabwe were mainly agricultural products with tobacco, making up approximately 31 per cent. of the total imports. Exports were mainly manufactured goods, with office machines and ADP equipment topping the table at 5.3 million.
	By 2005, two-way trade had fallen to 66 million. The principal change was in tobacco imports, which fell to 4.8 million from 31 million in 2000 down 85 per cent. Exports also fell, with the leading export, road vehicles, topping the table at 3.5 million. The decline in trade can be attributed to the policies of the Government of Zimbabwe which have brought about the fall of both imports and exports.
	A breakdown of UK exports and imports by sector for 2004 and 2005 is shown in the following table.
	HMG have not imposed any economic sanctions or restrictions on doing business in Zimbabwe and two-way trade continues, although as the aforementioned figures show, at a substantially reduced level. It is our view that economic sanctions would harm the people of Zimbabwe at a time of humanitarian crisis, while having very little impact on the ZANU (PF) leadership. The people of Zimbabwe have suffered enough.
	
		
			  UK trade with Zimbabwe 
			  Division and description  000 
			  Top 10 UK exports  
			  2004  
			 75 Office machines and ADP equipment 4,878 
			 78 Road vehicles 4,563 
			 76 Telecommunications and sound recording and reproducing apparatus 2,648 
			 72 Specialised industrial machinery 1,807 
			 74 General industrial machinery and equipment, nes and machine parts nes 1,590 
			 77 Electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, nes and electrical parts thereof 1,111 
			 71 Power generating machinery and equipment 899 
			 87 Professional, scientific and control instruments (and apparatus nes) 557 
			 67 Iron and steel 505 
			 26 Textile fibres 498 
			 Total of top 10 19,056 
			 Total trade 26,005 
			  2005  
			 78 Road vehicles 3,473 
			 75 Office machines and ADP equipment 3,379 
			 72 Specialised industrial machinery 2,370 
			 76 Telecommunications and sound recording and reproducing apparatus 1,545 
			 74 General industrial machinery and equipment, nes and machine parts nes 1,528 
			 71 Power generating machinery and equipment 1,238 
			 00 Live animals other than of Div. 03 740 
			 26 Textile fibres 716 
			 87 Professional, scientific and control instruments (and apparatus nes) 702 
			 77 Electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, nes and electrical parts thereof 670 
			 Total of top 10 16,362 
			 Total trade 22,113 
			   
			  Top 10 UK imports  
			  2004  
			 06 Sugar, sugar preparations and honey 22,554 
			 05 Vegetables and fruit 8,185 
			 12 Tobacco and tobacco manufactures 8,182 
			 82 Furniture and parts thereof; bedding, mattresses, supports, cushions and similar stuffed furnishings 1,675 
			 66 Non-metallic mineral manufactures 1,256 
			 07 Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and manufactures thereof 1,212 
			 68 Non-ferrous metals 956 
			 65 Textile yarn, fabrics, made-up articles, nes 935 
			 76 Telecommunications and sound recording and reproducing apparatus 464 
			 29 Crude animal and vegetable materials 317 
			 Total of top 10 45,736 
			 Total trade 47,779 
			   
			  2005  
			 66 Non-metallic mineral manufactures 14,970 
			 06 Sugar, sugar preparations and honey 13,087 
			 05 Vegetables and fruit 7,182 
			 12 Tobacco and tobacco manufactures 4,768 
			 82 Furniture and parts thereof; bedding, mattresses, supports, cushions and similar stuffed furnishings 912 
			 07 Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and manufactures thereof 495 
			 65 Textile yarn, fabrics, made-up articles, nes 374 
			 67 Iron and steel 217 
			 84 Articles of apparel and clothing accessories 144 
			 79 Other transport equipment 117 
			 Total of top 10 42,266 
			 Total trade 43,564 
			  Source: DTI Analysis of HM Revenue and Customs data.

TREASURY

Annuities

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the response by the Economic Secretary to the Treasury of 4 July 2006,  Official Report, column 729, on the Finance (No. 2) Bill, if he will place in the Library a note setting out the basis for his calculation of the 100 million cost of amendments to the rules on the compulsory purchase of annuities.

Edward Balls: The Exchequer cost arising from this proposal depends upon behavioural responses. But, assuming that the technical deficiencies with the proposal would be corrected, we stated a conservative overall initial cost of the measure of around 100 million per annum. Our longer term estimate of the overall costs is around 175 to 225 million per annum.
	This potential cost consists of two main elements. First, allowing larger lump sums to be taken out and taxed at marginal rate at age 75 would have a tax cost because additional pension savings would be induced.
	The up-front tax cost of these additional pension savings is estimated to be in the region of 300 to 500 million per annum. Around three quarters of this would be reclaimed as income tax on the resulting retirement benefits. This gives a broad range for this part of the costing of 75 to 125 million per annum. We used the lower range of this estimate for our conservative initial cost.
	Secondly, allowing individuals to leave pensions untouched until death and then bequeath the capital would reduce income tax on pensions in payment. As any additional savings held in pension assets at death would largely displace other liquid assets, held inheritance tax (IHT) would not increase to offset this income tax lost. Even if wealth held at death were to increase as a result of the tabled amendments, the average effective rate of IHT on such assets would still be far below the rate of income tax. Only 6 per cent. of estates have an IHT charge.
	The longer term costs of this behaviour are very uncertain but are estimated at 100 million per annum in lost income tax. But this would take time to build up and we have used one quarter of this amount for our conservative initial cost.

Computer Learning Centres

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many computer learning centres have been set up in each year since 1999.

Phil Hope: I have been asked to reply.
	The term computer learning centres potentially covers a wide range of provision, not all of which would have been funded by Government.
	However, I can say that between 1999 and 2003, with funding from the Capital Modernisation Fund and the New Opportunities Fund, around 6,000 UK online centres were established across England.

Computer Learning Centres

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on computer learning centres in each year since 1999; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: I have been asked to reply.
	The term computer learning centres potentially covers a wide range of provision, not all of which would have been funded by Government.
	However, I can say that between 1999 and 2003, a total of 396 million from the Capital Modernisation Fund and the New Opportunities Fund was invested in setting up UK online centres across England.

Data Protection

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the Answer of 26 June 2006,  Official Report, column 92W, on data protection, what is the longest period of time that has elapsed for HM Revenue and Customs to respond to its satisfaction to a subject access request in the first instance.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 13 July 2006
	The response meeting this description was the case cited in my reply of 26 June. The original letter was an appeal against a separate HMRC decision, although it also contained a subject access request.

Demographics

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the population of  (a) the UK,  (b) Peterborough constituency and  (c) the Peterborough City Council area is aged (i) under 25, (ii) between 25 and 34, (iii) between 35 and 44, (iv) between 45 and 54, (v) between 55 and 64 and (vi) over 65.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 17 July 2006:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your question concerning the percentage of the population of  (a) the UK  (b) Peterborough Constituency and  (c) Peterborough Unitary Authority aged (i) under 25, (ii) between 25 and 34, (iii) between 35 and 44, (iv) between 45 and 54, (v) between 55 and 64 and (vi) over 65. (85992)
	The latest available data for the UK and Peterborough Unitary Authority (UA) are the mid-2004 population estimates. The mid-2005 population estimates for the UK and local authorities in England and Wales are due to be published on 24 August 2006.
	Mid-year population estimates are not produced for parliamentary constituencies. For this reason, the latest data available for Peterborough Constituency is from the 2001 Census.
	The attached table shows the percentages requested for each age group and area, based on the latest available figures for these areas.
	
		
			  Percentage of population in selected age groups for UK, Peterborough Unitary Authority and Peterborough Parliamentary Constituency, Mid-2004 Population Estimates, Census 2001 
			  Age Group  UK  Peterborough Unitary Authority  Peterborough Parliamentary Constituency 
			 Under 25 31 33 34 
			 25 to 34 13 15 15 
			 35 to 44 15 15 14 
			 45 to 54 13 12 13 
			 55 to 64 12 10 9 
			 Over 65 16 14 14 
			  Source: Office for National Statistics.

ECOFIN

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many ECOFIN council meetings were attended by each Minister in his Department in each year since May 1997.

Edward Balls: Ministerial attendance and the outcome of each ECOFIN have been reported either by written ministerial statement, written answer or, occasionally, by letter to the Chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee.

Enterprise Insight

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his oral statement of 15 June 2006,  Official Report, column 886, on Enterprise Insight, how many new businesses have been set up in Northern Ireland as a result of Enterprise Insight; and when he last met the chief executive of Enterprise Insight.

John Healey: Enterprise Insight was created in 1999 to promote a culture of enterprise in the UK by running a national campaign promoting the spirit of enterprise to young people and those who influence them. It is funded by the Small Business Service to cover activities in England only and it does not provide business support services for enterprises based in Northern Ireland. Treasury Ministers regularly meet a wide range of individuals and organisations in the course of policy development. As is the case with previous administrations, it is not the practice of the Government to provide details of these meetings.

EU Budget

John Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department has taken to reduce UK contributions to the EU budget since 1997; what reductions have been made in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Balls: The UK's contributions to the EU budget are determined in accordance with the Own Resources Decision, details of which can be found at paragraph 2.15 of the European Community Finances White Paper (Cm 6770, page 7). The level of these contributions is also dependent in negotiation of the annual EU budget and HM Treasury plays an active role in these discussions, see below. The UK's contributions fluctuate from year to year as can be seen in Tables 31 and 3.2 of the European Community Finances White Paper (Cm 6770, page 15 and 17). These fluctuations occur for a variety of reasons, as explained in paragraph 3.6 of the European Community Finances White Paper (Cm 6770, page 15).
	The Government also participate in Council negotiations on the setting of the annual budget, where we seek to control budget growth in line with genuine needs and implementation capacity, and to focus spending where it adds most value and is most cost effective. This budget disciplined approach helps restrict the growth in UK contributions.
	Of course most of the annual budget is pre-set by treaty obligations and multi-annual spending programmes. Furthermore the UK is but one of 25 member states. Decisions in the Council on the annual budget are taken by Qualified Majority, and the final budget must be agreed with the European Parliament. Nevertheless by working effectively with like-minded member states, the Government are able to influence the outcome.
	In the last five years Council/EP negotiations have amended the Commission's preliminary draft budget (PDB) proposal and these figures are published annually in the European Community Finances White Paper.

Illegal Food Imports

James Paice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of passengers entering the UK each year with prohibited  (a) products of animal origin and  (b) fruit, vegetables and plant products in their luggage;
	(2)  what estimate his Department has made of the amount of  (a) meat and  (b) fruit, vegetables and plant products entering the UK illegally in each of the last three years;
	(3)  how many seizures of prohibited  (a) products of animal origin and  (b) fruit, vegetables and plant products there were at UK ports and airports in each of the last six years, broken down by product type; and what weight of each type of product was seized in each year;
	(4)  what proportion of passengers searched by HM Revenue and Customs at UK ports and airports in each of the last six years were found to be carrying prohibited  (a) products of animal origin and  (b) fruit, vegetables and plant products in their luggage.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Revenue and Customs' central records for POAO, fruit and vegetable and plant products seized by customs officers at ports and airports in Great Britain for the past three financial years are as follows:
	
		
			  Seizures of POAO, fruit, vegetable and plant products 
			   2003-04  2004-05  January to December 2005 
			 Total number of seizures of POAO 15,316 25,286 22,597 
			 Total weight of seized POAO items (kg) 174,206 216,889 175,435 
			 Total number of seizures of fruit, vegetable and plant products 1,246 1,497 1,276 
			 Total weight of fruit, vegetable and plant products seized (kg) 21,253 28,189 25,409 
		
	
	
		
			  Types of POAO seizures 
			   2003-04  2004-05  January to December 2005 
			 Number of meat seizures 6,473 10,792 9,890 
			 Weight of meat seizures (kg) 70,083 77,087 57,562 
			 Number of fish seizures 5,156 8,235 7,189 
			 Weight of fish seizures (kg) 67,625 84,563 72,944 
			 Number of dairy seizures 3,108 5,091 4,477 
			 Weight of dairy seizures (kg) 27,564 40,265 35,667 
			 Number of honey seizures 530 1,168 1,041 
			 Weight of honey seizures (kg) 8,934 14,975 9,262 
		
	
	Information on POAO seizures made prior to April 2003 can be found in DEFRA's Annual Review of Controls on Imports of Animal Products last published in July 2005.
	HMRC do not produce estimates on the amount of illegal meat imported into the UK. Such estimates are held by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA).
	HMRC make no estimates of the proportion of passengers entering the UK each year with POAO and fruit, vegetables and plant products in their luggage.

Income Tax

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much income tax was paid on average per household in each of the last three financial years; and what estimate he has made of the average amount of tax which will be paid in 2006-07.

Dawn Primarolo: Information can be found on the Office for National Statistics (ONS) website in table 14, Average incomes, taxes and benefits by decile groups of all households in the article The effects of taxes and benefits on household income from the ONS' Economic Trends publications.
	 For 2004-05:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/articles/economic_trends/ET_May_Francis_Jones.pdf
	 For 2003-04:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/articles/nojournal/taxesbenefits200304/taxesbenefits200304.pdf
	 For 2002-03:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/articles/economic_trends/ET607Lakin.pdf
	Similar information for 2005-06 and 2006-07 is not yet available.

Malawi

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on how many occasions he has visited Malawi since 1997; and what the outcome was of each visit.

John Healey: holding answer 4 July 2006
	I understand that the Chancellor has never visited Malawi.

Modern Apprenticeship Taskforce

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times the Modern Apprenticeship Taskforce announced in the 2002 pre-Budget has convened.

John Healey: The Apprenticeship Task Force (ATF) met for the first time in April 2003 and subsequently seven times with the final meeting in May 2005. In April 2006, the Apprenticeship Ambassadors Network (AAN) was established to continue the work of the ATF.

National Lottery

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the tax yield to the Treasury on national lottery ticket sales has been in each year since it was launched.

John Healey: The information requested is publicly available on the UK Trade Info website (http://www.uktradeinfo.com).

National Lottery

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether VAT is charged on the construction of sports facilities funded by the national lottery.

John Healey: Under European agreements we may keep our zero rates, but may not extend them or introduce new ones.
	VAT is chargeable on the construction of all new non-residential buildings, other than those that will be used at least 90 per cent. for a relevant charitable purposesuch as free-of-charge activities provided by a charity, a village hall or similar.
	Where VAT is chargeable on construction and is not reclaimable through the VAT system, it is reasonable to expect this cost to be taken into account when an organisation makes a bid for national lottery funding.

National Lottery

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether athletes funded by the national lottery are exempt from tax and national insurance contributions on the grants awarded to them.

John Healey: Whether an athlete is liable for income tax and national insurance contributions on a National Lottery Sports Fund grant will depend on whether he or she is earning an income as a self-employed person from competing in any sport (including any associated activities such as sponsorship or journalism). That is a question of fact to be determined in individual cases. Detailed guidance on these issues is provided in the HMRC Business Income Manual (beginning at page BIM50650), available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/bimmanual/BIM50650.htm

Online Tax Reduction Claims

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many small companies have gone online and claimed a special tax reduction in each year since 2000.

John Healey: The number of small companies that have submitted their Employer's Annual Returns online and a special tax reduction has been made as follows:
	
		
			  Return for year to 5 April:  
			 2000 0 
			 2001 1,400 
			 2002 0 
			 2003 0 
			 2004 0 
			 2005 900,000

Parliamentary Questions

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many parliamentary questions tabled to his Department were awaiting a reply on 10 July 2006; which of those had been waiting longer than  (a) two and  (b) three weeks for a reply; and what the reason for the delay was in each case.

John Healey: Treasury Ministers endeavour to answer parliamentary questions promptly wherever possible. Of the 173 written questions which were awaiting answer on 10 July, 119 had been received at least a fortnight previously and 85 of these questions had been received at least three weeks previously.
	Treasury Ministers had answered 5,252 questions in the present session up to 10 July. For the Treasury's performance in answering written questions within the timescales set by the House, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 11 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 1724-5W.

Parliamentary Questions

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will answer Question  (a) 38754,  (b) 46531,  (c) 62788,  (d) 63040,  (e) 63323,  (f) 72367,  (g) 75746,  (h) 75752,  (i) 75754,  (j) 75747,  (k) 75748,  (l) 75756,  (m) 75751,  (n) 75757,  (o) 75755,  (p) 75768,  (q) 75769,  (r) 75775,  (s) 75776,  (t) 75780,  (u) 75783,  (v) 75784,  (w) 75789,  (x) 75817,  (y) 75818,  (z) 75842,  (aa) 76207,  (bb) 76418,  (cc) 76419,  (dd) 76421,  (ee) 76422,  (ff) 76423,  (gg) 76425,  (hh) 76426,  (ii) 76429,  (jj) 76430,  (kk) 76431,  (ll) 76432,  (mm) 76470,  (nn) 76471,  (oo) 76474,  (pp) 76475,  (qq) 76476,  (rr) 76478,  (ss) 76480,  (tt) 76481,  (uu) 76482,  (vv) 76483,  (ww) 76484,  (xx) 76485,  (yy) 76487,  (zz) 76488,  (aaa) 76853,  (bbb) 76854,  (ccc) 76870,  (ddd) 76946,  (eee) 76994,  (fff) 76995 and  (ggg) 76996, on tax credits, tabled by the hon. Member for Yeovil; what the reasons are for the time taken to reply in each case; and what guidance his Department applies on the length of time that should be taken to answer.

Dawn Primarolo: Question 38754 was a duplicate of the hon. Member's question 38697, which was answered on 10 January, and as such was withdrawn by the Table Office and never appeared in the Questions Book. Some of the other questions concerned have already been answered. Those that have not will be answered as soon as possible.
	Treasury Ministers endeavour to answer questions within the timescales set by the House. The provision of timely answers depends in part upon the number of questions the Department is dealing with. The Treasury has answered 554 questions from the hon. Gentleman in the present Session, the great majority of which have concerned tax credits.

Planning Gain Supplement

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many written submissions the Government have received to the consultation on Planning Gain Supplement; and if he will place in the Library a copy of each submission.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 6 and 16 March 2006,  Official Report, columns 1105W and 2417W respectively.

Population Statistics

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to change the methods of collecting local authority population statistics to take account of immigration from EU accession countries in the period since May 2004; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 17 July 2006:
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking whether the Chancellor of the Exchequer plans to review the methods of collecting local authority population statistics in order to take account of immigration from EU accession countries in the period since May 2004. (85001)
	Migration of accession country citizens to and from the UK is captured via existing data sources that are used to estimate population change. For population estimation purposes, the definition of a migrant is someone who changes their country of usual residence for a period of at least a year which is the UN recommended definition of a long term migrant. The 2005 mid-year population estimates, due to be published on 24 August 2006, will therefore include an estimate of the number of long term immigrants from the EU accession countries, based on the UN definition.
	It is recognised that information about short-term migrants is needed, both nationally and at local levels, for policy and planning purposes and for service provision. In May of this year, ONS set up an Inter-departmental Task Force on Migration Statistics. The Task Force will report to me by the end of August, making recommendations on timely improvements that could be made to the estimates of migration and migrant populations in the United Kingdom, both nationally and at local level.
	ONS are also carrying out an extensive programme of work titled Improving Migration and Population Statistics (IMPS) Project which is designed to investigate improvements to the population and migration statistics produced by ONS. Further information on this work can be found at: www.statistics.gov.uk/IMPS. In particular:
	The IMPS programme of research is taking forward recommendations from the National Statistics Quality Review (NSQR) into International Migration. The quality review made recommendations for improving the estimation of total migration flows to and from the UK and the allocation of international migration to local areas. This work includes investigating administrative sources that may be used in producing or quality assuring the international migration estimates (such as the Worker Registration Scheme data), investigating potential sources of information about short-term migrants and making improvements to the current source of information on international migrants, the International Passenger Survey (IPS).
	The latest Progress Report on taking forward the recommendations of the NSQR on International Migration can be found at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/about/data/methodology/quality/reviews/population.asp
	Also, as part of the IMPS programme, ONS are conducting Local Authority case studies. These aim to get a better understanding, from a local perspective, of the administrative data sources that are currently used in the population estimation procedure. They will also investigate any other high quality sources that the local areas use themselves for population purposes. The local areas selected for these studies are ones that are known to have reasons which make their population difficult to estimate, e.g. those with a high volume of migratory moves. It is intended that these studies will contribute towards the improvement of both internal and international migration statistics.

Sniffer Dogs

James Paice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many meat detector sniffer dogs were employed at each UK  (a) port and  (b) airport in each of the last six years.

Dawn Primarolo: Meat detection dogs were introduced by DEFRA in 2002, and were transferred to HMRC in 2003. The number of animal origin detector dogs used at ports and airports in Great Britain since 2002 is in the following table:
	
		
			   Number of dogs 
			 2002 2 
			 2003 2 
			 2004 6 
			 2005 10 
			 2006 9 (+2 in training) 
		
	
	These dogs are employed on a mobile basis across Great Britain.
	We cannot disclose further information about the deployment of the dogs as this would provide information of value to those seeking to circumvent HMRC controls, thereby prejudicing the prevention and detection of crime.

Statutory Instruments

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by his Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005.

John Healey: Since October 2005, two statutory instruments sponsored by HM Treasury have been reported by the JCSI as defective:
	One in its report of 2 November 2005, and
	One in its report of 8 November 2005.
	In addition one instrument sponsored by HM Revenue and Customs was so reported in the Committee's report of 1 February 2006.

Taskforce on Migration Statistics

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the taskforce on migration statistics to report to Ministers; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 17 July 2006:
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the Taskforce on Migration Statistics to report to Ministers. (85002)
	The aim of the Task Force is to report to me, as National Statistician, by the end of August, making recommendations on timely improvements that could be made to the estimates of migration and migrant populations in the United Kingdom, both nationally and at local level. I will report to Ministers in October, after the Parliamentary recess.

Tax Credits

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost of abolishing the family element of the child tax credit and giving equivalent support through child benefit; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Child tax credit (CTC) includes a family element of 545 per year. It also includes a baby addition at a rate of a further 545 per year for families for periods when they are responsible for a child aged under one year. Equivalent payments are made to families receiving their child support via income support or jobseeker's allowance. Abolishing these elements would reduce expenditure on CTC by around 3.3 billion per year, based on 2004-05 awards. The extra child benefit expenditure resulting from adding the weekly equivalents to the rate for the eldest child would be around 4.3 billion per year. Therefore, the net cost would be 1 billion per year.
	The recent Joseph Rowntree Foundation report What will it take to end child poverty? suggested that the child tax credit was probably the most cost-effective way of reducing child poverty. To achieve the same effect by raising child benefit would be up to three times as expensive.

Tax Credits

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many frauds involving claims for tax credits have been found to be based on false identities in  (a) 2003-04,  (b) 2004-05 and  (c) 2005-06; and how much was paid in respect of fraudulent claims based on false identities in each year.

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2006,  Official Report, column 557W, on tax credits, 
	(1)  how much had been paid out to the 22,284 claims in payment that were stopped; on what dates he met the Paymaster General to discuss the problem of tax credit fraud; how many calls to the helpline have been received where fraud is suspected; and if he will commission an independent review into tax credit fraud;
	(2)  how many tax credit claims in payment have been stopped since June 2004 because of fraud or suspected fraud; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  how many employees of Network Rail had their identities used in tax credit fraud in 2005-06; what the cost to the Exchequer was; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what his estimate is of the scale of identity fraud in relation to tax credits; how many tax credits staff have been involved in identity fraud since 2003-04; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  what recent action his Department has taken to reduce the level of tax credit fraud;
	(6)  what his latest estimate is of the cost of tax credit fraud for each quarter from April 2003 to April 2006; and if he will make a statement;
	(7)  what his latest estimate is of the number of people who experienced identity fraud as a result of tax credits fraud in  (a) 2005-06 and  (b) 2006-07 to date; and if he will make a statement;
	(8)  what his latest estimate is of the level of (a) fraud and (b) error in respect of tax credit payments in (i) 2003-04 and (ii) 2004-05; and if he will make a statement;
	(9)  when he plans to publish the final assessment of tax credit fraud for 2003-04; and if he will make a statement;
	(10)  what his latest estimates are of the number of cases of tax credit fraud in each reporting period since 2001-02; and if he will make a statement;
	(11)  if he will make a statement on the level of fraud in claims for the childcare tax credit;
	(12)  how many tax credit claims have been stopped due to fraud and suspicion of fraud in each month from January to May; and if he will make a statement;
	(13)  if he will make a statement on tax credit fraud by people claiming as lone parents;
	(14)  what assessment he has made of the level of tax credit fraud by people claiming disabled worker status;
	(15)  what information on tax credit fraud his Department has made available to the National Audit Office since 1 January; and if he will make a statement;
	(16)  how many planned measures to reduce tax credit fraud had not been implemented as at 1 June 2006; and if he will make a statement;
	(17)  on what date he sent the National Audit Office estimates of tax credit fraud and error for 2003-04 based upon the assessment of a sample of 4,700 cases;
	(18)  whether  (a) Ministers and  (b) special advisers have seen (i) drafts and (ii) a final version of the HM Revenue and Customs report into tax credit fraud and error which was due to be published in spring 2006; and if he will make a statement;
	(19)  what his latest estimate is of the breakdown between  (a) fraud,  (b) official error and  (c) claimant error in the existing estimates for tax credit fraud and error; and if he will make a statement;
	(20)  if he will publish the report received by the Paymaster General in June 2005 on suspected fraudulent activity in the tax credit system; and if he will make a statement.

Danny Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether randomised sample tax credit cases are tested to ensure residency criteria are complied with.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my right hon. Friend the Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) and the hon. Members for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) and for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Danny Alexander) to the statement I made to the House on 11 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 1281-82. I refer them also to the HMRC publications Child and Working Tax Credits: Error and fraud statistics 2003-04 and Tackling error and fraud in the Child and Working Tax Credits, available on the HMRC website at www.hmrc.gov.uk/news/index.htm., and to HM Revenue and Customs 2005-06 Accounts: The Comptroller and Auditor General's Standard Report, part 2, available at http://www.nao.org.uk/pn/05-06/05061159.htm.

Tax Rebates (IT Equipment)

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many small companies have claimed a tax rebate on the cost of purchasing computers or investing in information technology in each year since 2000.

Dawn Primarolo: Small companies are able to claim tax relief in the form of capital allowances for expenditure on a wide range of assets. Claims for capital allowances are not broken down to the level of detail required for firm estimates of the number of small companies investing in computers or information technology specifically.

Tax Receipts (Energy)

Peter Bone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the total tax receipts relating to energy in  (a) 2005,  (b) 2004 and  (c) 2003.

Dawn Primarolo: Receipts from taxes on energy are published by the Office for National Statistics in table 3.1 of the Environmental Accounts that can be found at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_environment/EAMay06.pdf.

Taxable Homecare Allowance

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will  (a) estimate the total cost of introducing a taxable homecare allowance of 150 per week to all families with one child under the age of three and 50 for each additional child under three net of the abolition of the working tax credit and child tax credit schemes and  (b) assess the likely impact on child poverty of introducing such a scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: This information is not available except at disproportionate cost.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Access to Work Scheme

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many disabled staff in his Department received support through the Access to Work scheme  (a) in each of the last five years and  (b) in 2006-07.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department does not collect information about the Access to Work scheme in the form requested centrally and it could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Since 2003, my Department has provided assistance for its disabled staff from its own reasonable adjustments fund. This fund has assisted over 500 staff.

Adult Education

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many colleges have made representations to the Department in the last 12 months concerning  (a) adult education courses being cut and  (b) places on such courses being reduced due to funding pressures.

Bill Rammell: Our records for the last 12 months indicate that we have received 221 letters from MPs on a range of FE funding issues including proposed changes to adult courses. Some letters from MPs include correspondence forwarded from FE college principals and in addition to these letters we have received 18 letters directly from FE college principles on FE funding issues.
	We do not have records of any representations made in person by or on behalf of colleges. However, both I and my colleagues have regular meetings with providers and stakeholders including representative organisations such as the Association of Colleges and the Association of Learning Providers about adult education.

Bullying

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many incidents of bullying were recorded in  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in Suffolk in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: We are unable to provide this information because we do not collect these data centrally. However, individual schools may record incidents of bullying and some local authorities keep records for their own area, which we welcome as best practice within our anti-bullying guidance to schools, Don't Suffer in Silence.
	Since 2003-04, however, we have collected data on the reasons for exclusions from schools. In the 2004-05 academic year, 130 pupils were permanently excluded and 7,680 were given fixed period exclusions for bullying. This information comes from the Statistical First Release on Permanent and Fixed Period Exclusion from Schools and Exclusion Appeals in England, 2004/05.

Bullying

Anne Snelgrove: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many incidents of bullying of teachers by  (a) their peers and  (b) management have been reported in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department for Education and Skills does not record the information that my hon. Friend has requested. Bullying of teachers by anyone is unacceptable. Teachers who feel that they have been subjected to bullying should report incidents to their employer and, where appropriate, their professional association immediately.

Chat Rooms

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions he had with the Home Department on vetting chat room moderators on the internet prior to the publication of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 10 July 2006
	There has been a series of discussions between DfES and Home Office officials about the provisions in the Bill for vetting chat room moderators. These discussions have also included representatives of the industry. They have been helpful in clarifying the extent of the vetting requirement.

Children Leaving Care

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of young people who left care in the last 12 months in West Lancashire constituency are in education, training or employment.

Parmjit Dhanda: Information on the proportion of young people who left care in the last 12 months who are in education, training or employment is not collected by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES). However, the following table shows information on care leavers on their 19(th) birthday who were looked after in their 17(th) year and is available at national level and for the local authority of Lancashire. Information is not available at constituency level.
	
		
			  Activity on 19( th)  birthday of care leavers who were looked after  on 1 April 2002 aged 16 (in their 17( th)  year) or over in the year ending 31 March 2005 ( 1,2) 
			  Numbers and percentages 
			   Care leavers on 19( th)  birthday  In education, training or employment  Percentage in education, training or employment 
			 England (National) 5,200 3,100 59 
			 Lancashire (local authority) 100 45 47 
			 (1) Source:  DfESFigures are taken from the SSDA903 return which since 2003-04 covered all looked after children. Excerpt from Table 22 of the Statistical Volume on Children looked after by Local Authorities Year Ending 31 March 2005Volume 2: Local Authorities (2) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials.  Note: To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 to the nearest 10 otherwise. At local authority level, data are rounded to the nearest 5.

Children Leaving Care

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average age of children leaving care was in West Lancashire constituency in  (a) 2004 and  (b) 2005.

Parmjit Dhanda: The following table shows the average age of children leaving care in Lancashire in 2004 and 2005. Information at constituency level is not collected centrally.
	
		
			  Children who ceased to be looked after during the years  ending 31 March 2004 and 2005 by average age at end of latest period of care ( 1,2,3) 
			  year:month 
			   2003-04  2004-05 
			  England (National)   
			 Average age at end of stay (yr:mth) 10:7 10:9 
			
			  Lancashire (local authority)   
			 Average age at end of stay (yr:mth) 11:2 10:6 
			 (1) Source:  DfESFigures are taken from the SSDA903 return which since 2003-04 covered all looked after children. (2) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials. (3) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 to the nearest 10 otherwise. At local authority level data are rounded to the nearest 5.

Children Leaving Care

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children left care in West Lancashire constituency in  (a) 2004 and  (b) 2005; and how many have left in 2006.

Parmjit Dhanda: The following table shows the number of children leaving care in Lancashire in 2004 and 2005. Information for 2006 will be available at local authority level in March 2007. Information at constituency level is not collected centrally.
	
		
			  Children who ceased to be looked after during the years  ending 31 March 2004 and 2005 by average age at end of latest period of care( 1, 2) 
			  Number 
			   2003-04  2004-05 
			 England (national) 25,800 25,600 
			 Lancashire (local authority) 525 515 
			 (1) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials.  (2) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000, to the nearest 10 otherwise. At local authority level data are rounded to the nearest 5.   Source:  DfESFigures are taken from the SSDA903 return which since 2003-04 covered all looked after children.

Children Leaving Care

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many young people in West Lancashire who left care in 2005 stayed in  (a) their own house,  (b) with friends and  (c) in hostel or bed and breakfast accommodation.

Parmjit Dhanda: Information on young people who left care in 2005 is not available by the breakdown requested. However, the following table shows how many young people in Lancashire who left care in 2005 had as their last placement, a placement in  (a) an independent living,  (b) with own parents and  (c) in home and hostels. Note that a placement in independent living includes staying in a flat, or staying in lodgings without supported staff, staying in a bed and breakfast and finally staying with friends. Information at constituency level is not collected centrally.
	
		
			  Children who ceased to be looked after in 2005 whose last placement was in independent livings, with own parents or in homes and hostels( 1) 
			  Number 
			   Placements( 2) 
			   All children( 3)  Independent livings( 4)  Own parents( 5)  Homes and hostels( 6)  Others( 7) 
			 England (national) 25,600 1,500 2,500 2,500 19,100 
			 Lancashire (local authority) 515 25 65 80 340 
			 (1) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials.  (2) To maintain the confidentiality of each individual child, data at national level are rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000, to the nearest 10 otherwise. At local authority level data are rounded to the nearest 5. As a consequence of our rounding and suppression, figures may not sum to the total.  (3) Total number of children looked after who left care in 2005.  (4) Independent livings include in flat or lodgings without formal support staff, or in bedsit, BB, or with friends.  (5) Own parents means placed with own parents or other person with parental responsibility.  
			 (6) Homes and hostels inside and outside local authority boundary.  (7) Others include looked after children placed for adoption, in foster placement with relatives or friends, in other foster placements provided by the local authority or provided by an agency, in residential employment, in secure units, in residential accommodation not subject to regulation, in other residential care home, in schools, in temporary placements, children missing from placements, children missing from care and other placements not listed above.   Source:  DfESFigures are taken from the SSDA903 return which since 2003-04 covered all looked after children.

Children Leaving Care

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what support services are available to young people leaving care in West Lancashire to help them deal with the financial and practical aspects of independent living.

Parmjit Dhanda: Services to care leavers in Lancashire are provided directly by Lancashire county council. Services for care leavers in West Lancashire are co-ordinated by the county's south area leaving care team which supports young people who live in a wide area, from Skelmersdale to the boundaries of Preston and Southport.
	Every care leaver must have a pathway plan based on an assessment of their personal needs, setting out the services that will be necessary to support them to greater independence. Leaving care services in the West Lancashire area draw on a wide range of professional staff to contribute to the support of individual care leavers including foster carers, children's home staff, social workers, specialist leaving care staff, Connexions staff and specialist welfare rights and housing staff. Care leavers in West Lancashire also have opportunities to take up work experience arranged by the Looked After Children Employment Skills (LACES) project.
	The exact level of financial support provided to any care leaver will be recorded in the individual's pathway plan. Up until the age of eighteen, the local authority will usually be his/her primary source of income. Lancashire, as is the case for other local authorities, is responsible for funding accommodation, maintenance and other expenses (e.g. travel and leisure costs). Once care leavers reach 18, they are entitled to have access to the same mainstream arrangements for obtaining financial help as other young people. It will be the role of their leaving care personal adviser to assist them to access this help. However Lancashire, as the responsible local authority, has a continuing duty to provide assistance, for as long as the young person remains in an approved programme, with the costs of education or training.

Children Leaving Care

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many  (a) leaving-care workers and  (b) personal advisors are available to young people leaving care in West Lancashire constituency; and how regularly they have contact with individual clients on average.

Parmjit Dhanda: Services to care leavers in Lancashire are provided directly by Lancashire county council. Services for care leavers in West Lancashire are provided by the south area leaving care team. This team comprises a manager, one qualified social worker, one support worker, two leaving care co-ordinators and an administrator. Two members on this team are specifically available to provide support as leaving care personal advisers.
	The level of contact that is maintained with each individual care leaver depends on their personal needs. In Lancashire, where young people entitled to care leaving services continue to remain looked after by the local authority, their social workers must visit at least every three months. However, when young people are being actively prepared to leave care, contact will be far more frequent than this and where a young person requires intensive support, contact might take place several times a week. The team estimates that, on average, all care leavers in West Lancashire are seen at least fortnightly.
	Young people are also able to make contact with the leaving care team without formal appointments. They make regular contact by phone, occasionally write letters or e-mail and increasingly prefer to communicate by text message. All young people have their social worker's mobile phone number and if they leave a message in working hours their social worker will aim to respond the same day.

Children's Centres

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much has been spent on children's centres in each year since 2003.

Beverley Hughes: The delivery of first phase children's centres began in 2003-04, with expenditure during this period totalling 2.2 million capital and 1.9 million revenue. For the period 2004-06, local authorities were allocated 111 million revenue and 315 million capital funding for children's centres.
	In addition to this funding, we allocated 313 million capital to Sure Start Local Programmes (SSLP) in 2004-06 and we expect that most of this budget would have been used to facilitate SSLPs to become children's centres.

Class Sizes

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of class sizes in  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in (i) rural and (ii) non-rural areas in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Maintained primary and secondary schools( 1) : average size of one teacher classes 1997-2006England 
			   Maintained primary  Maintained secondary 
			   Urban areas  Rural areas  Urban areas  Rural areas 
			 1997(2) 27.8 26.3 21.7 21.5 
			 1998(3) 27.9 26.6 21.7 21.7 
			 1999(4) 27.7 26.3 21.8 21.9 
			 2000 27.4 25.9 22.0 22.0 
			 2001 26.9 25.4 22.0 22.1 
			 2002 26.6 24.9 21.9 22.0 
			 2003 26.6 24.9 21.9 22.0 
			 2004 26.5 25.0 21.8 22.0 
			 2005 26.5 25.0 21.6 21.9 
			 2006 26.6 25.0 21.4 21.7 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed  (2) Excludes three primary schools for which there is no urban/rural indicator  (3) Excludes six primary schools for which there is no urban/rural indicator  (4) Excludes three primary and three secondary schools for which there is no urban/rural indicator.   Source:  Schools Census

Deaf Children

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what proportion of deaf 11-year-olds achieved level 4 at Key Stage 2 in  (a) reading,  (b) writing and  (c) mathematics in (i) West Lancashire and (ii) Lancashire in each year since 1996.

Parmjit Dhanda: We cannot provide information relating specifically to deaf pupils. However, in 2004 information on type of Special Educational Need (SEN) was collected for the first time via the Pupil Level Annual School Census for those pupils at School Action Plus and with statements of SEN. The type of SEN indicator includes a category for those pupils with Hearing Impairment, and information for the pupils who have Hearing Impairment listed as their primary SEN is provided in the following table. Other pupils with statements of SEN or School Action Plus who may have a hearing impairment but for whom this is not listed as their primary SEN are not included in this table.
	
		
			  KS2 achievements for 11-year-old pupils( 1)  at School Action Plus and with statements of SEN, with hearing impairments as their Primary SEN, in all maintained schools, 2003/04 to 2004/05( 2) 
			   Lancashire LA( 3)  England 
			   2004/05  2003/04  2004/05  2003/04 
			 Number of eligible 11-year-old pupils(4) in reading 48 31 1,486 970 
			 Number achieving level 4+ in reading(5) 30 17 911 478 
			 Percentage achieving level 4+ in reading 62.5 54.8 61.3 49.3 
			 Number of eligible 11-year-old pupils(4) in writing 48 31 1,486 970 
			 Number achieving level 4+ in writing(5) 24 8 565 309 
			 Percentage achieving level 4+ in writing 50.0 25.8 38.0 31.9 
			 Number of eligible 11-year-old pupils(4) in maths 48 31 1,503 975 
			 Number achieving level 4+ in maths(5) 29 15 793 426 
			 Percentage achieving level 4+ in maths 60.4 48.4 52.8 43.7 
			 (1) Number of KS2 eligible pupils with a valid result. (2) Including attempts and achievement in previous academic years. (3) Figures for West Lancashire have not been provided as the number of pupils involved is too small. (4) Numbers relate to pupils with a statement of SEN or School Action Plus and with hearing impairment as their primary SEN who were eligible for the KS2 test. (5) Maths results are checked by schools as part of the checking exercise for the Primary School Achievement and Attainment Tables. Reading and writing results are not checked by schools.

Departmental Publications

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the unnumbered Command Papers produced by his Department in each Session since 1976; by what means (a) hon. Members and  (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: Documents which are laid before Parliament as unnumbered Command Papers are generally restricted to Explanatory Notes to Treaties, Explanatory Memorandum to Statutory Instruments and some Treasury Minutes. All other documents are published in the numbered Command Papers series.
	A complete list of unnumbered Command Papers can only be produced at disproportionate cost.
	Copies of all unnumbered Command Papers are made available via the Vote Office.

Departmental Staff (Sickness Absence)

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2006,  Official Report, column 644W, on departmental staff, how many members of staff in his Department have had two or more periods of sickness of less than five days in both of the years for which he provided figures.

Parmjit Dhanda: In 2005,1,264 members of staff had two or more periods of sickness of less than five days; in 2004, the number was 1,389. In addition, there were 1,461 in 2003.

Departmental Staff (Sickness Absence)

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2006,  Official Report, column 644W, on departmental staff, why there are no records of the number of periods of sickness absence of less than five days prior to 2004.

Parmjit Dhanda: I am now able to give the information requested for 2003. It is set out in the following table.
	
		
			  2003 
			  Periods of sick leave of less than five days  Number of staff 
			 2 677 
			 3 384 
			 4 201 
			 5+ 219 
			 Total 1,481

Edison Schools

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what  (a) meetings Ministers have held and  (b) correspondence Ministers have exchanged with Edison Schools in the last two years.

Jim Knight: Lord Andrew Adonis had a breakfast meeting with Chris Whittle of Edison Schools on 1 December. To the best of our knowledge, there have been no other meetings or correspondence between Ministers and Edison Schools. A visit was made to Thorpe Bay School, Southend, by the then Secretary of State my right hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, West (Ruth Kelly) in January 2006. Thorpe Bay School has benefited from school improvement support from Edison, but we are not aware that the Secretary of State met any Edison representative on this occasion.

Education Funding

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total recurrent funding per pupil was in real terms for each local education authority in each year from 1998-99 to 2006-07.

Jim Knight: The available information has been placed in the House Library.

Environmental Standards

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether his Department  (a) is committed to the achievement of environmental management to ISO 14001 standard and  (b) has been externally certified as in compliance with that standard; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: The New Framework for Sustainable Development in Government (the framework) targets mandate Government to have Environmental Management Systems based, or modelled upon, a recognised system.
	The Department has commissioned consultants to introduce a Sustainable Operations Management System (SOMS) into all DfES HQ buildings in this financial year.
	The new system will be based upon the ISO 14001:2004 standard but is not currently required to achieve accreditation to that standard.

Further Education

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students from the London borough of Bexley applied for  (a) university,  (b) college and  (c) other further education places in (i) 2003-04 and (ii) 2004-05.

Bill Rammell: Information on applicants to undergraduate courses is collected by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). The figures cover students who apply to full-time courses via UCAS, but they exclude students who apply to part-time courses and those who apply for full-time courses directly to institutions.
	Data on the number of students living in the London borough of Bexley applying to full time undergraduate courses through UCAS are given in the table.
	There is no comparable central organisation which processes applications for further education courses; students apply directly to the relevant FE institution.
	
		
			  Applicants from the London borough of Bexley applying through UCAS for full time undergraduate courses at UK institutions 
			  Year of entry  Applicants 
			 2003 entry 1,314 
			 2004 entry 1,273 
			  Source:  Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) 
		
	
	In terms of the students from Bexley actually enrolling on courses, the available information covering enrolments at English further education institutions and full-time and part-time undergraduate entrants at UK higher education institutions is given in the table.
	
		
			  Students( 1)  from the London borough of Bexley at further and higher education institutions 
			  Type of Institution  2003/04  2004/05 
			 Learners at FE institutions:   
			 General FE and tertiary 4,880 9,170 
			 Sixth form college 30 90 
			 Other college 245 370 
			 External institution 1,495 2,940 
			 Entrants to HE institutions 2,060 2,135 
			 (1) Covers students on both full-time and part-time courses.  Council (LSC) Individualised Learner record (ILR). HE entrant figures are on a HESA Standard Registration Population basis. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.  Source:  Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record data and the Learning and Skills Council.

Gap Years

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research his Department has commissioned on a potential link between the taking of gap years and university non-completion rates.

Bill Rammell: The Department has not commissioned any research in recent years which was specifically focused on the potential link between taking gap years and university non-completion rates. However, there have been two studies in the past four years which provide relevant information.
	The first, Dropping Out: A Study of Early Leavers from Higher Education (DfES, RR386, December 2002), surveyed around 1,500 early leavers from HE. Just under a quarter cited mistaken choice of course as the most important influence on withdrawal. The survey also noted that:
	Many respondents felt that they had been pushed by their schools to enter university. They instead felt that they would have benefited from a year out of education to think about their choices more carefully and to enter HE with greater maturity.
	The second, Review of Gap Year Provision (DfES, RR555, July 2004), provided a comprehensive summary and analysis of existing literature and research into gap years. It noted a range of benefits of gap years to individuals, employers and society. These included improved educational performance. However, it did identify a couple of studies which suggested that
	a break in academic work and routine may have negative effects on motivation and progress.
	It noted that some university careers support services make reference to this and offer advice on how gap year applicants might address this on arriving at university.

GCSE

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of pupils achieved nine or more grade A passes at GCSE in each year since 1997, broken down by type of secondary school.

Jim Knight: The following table shows the percentage of 15-year-old pupils(1) achieving nine or more GCSEs at grade A or A* in each year since 1997, broken down by school type(2).
	
		
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Community School 1.2 1.4 1.7 1.9 1.9 2.0 1.9 2.0 2.3 
			 Voluntary Aided School 2.3 2.4 3.7 4.3 4.3 4.7 4.9 5.2 5.8 
			 Voluntary Controlled school 2.7 3.0 3.7 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.6 4.7 5.9 
			 Foundation School 2.8 3.4 3.3 4.1 4.1 4.4 4.6 4.8 5.1 
			 City Technology College 2.5 2.4 2.5 3.8 3.8 4.4 4.3 5.2 5.3 
			 City Academy   0.0 0.3 0.2 
			 Community Special School 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Foundation Special School 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Non Maintained Special School 0.2 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 0.3 0.5 0.5 
			 Independent Special School(3) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Independent School 14.7 16.9 18.6 20.1 20.1 20.8 21.6 21.7 22.4 
			 Hospital School and PRU(4) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 All Schools 2.6 3.0 3.4 3.9 3.9 4.0 4.1 4.3 5.1 
			 (1) Pupils aged 15 at the start of the academic year, i.e. 31 August.  (2) Institution type as recorded through secondary school achievement and attainment tables.  (3) Independent special school approved to take pupils with special educational needs. (4) Including community and foundation hospital schools and pupil referral units.

Gifted and Talented Students

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children from each school in Brent are members of the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth Scheme.

Jim Knight: The number of members of National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY) in each maintained school in Brent is set out in the following table. Membership of NAGTY is available to pupils aged 11-19 in the top 5 per cent. of the ability range.
	
		
			  Brent local authority area schools  NAGTY members 
			  Academy  
			 Capital City Academy 18 
			   
			  Secondarycommunity  
			 Wembley High Technology College 28 
			   
			  Secondaryfoundation  
			 Alperton Community School 2 
			 Claremont High School 0 
			 Copeland (A Specialist Science Community College) 18 
			 John Kelly Boys' Technology College 0 
			 John Kelly Girls' Technology College 48 
			 Kingsbury High School 32 
			 Preston Manor High School 92 
			 Queen's Park Community School 66 
			   
			  Secondaryvoluntary aided  
			 Cardinal Hinsley High School 0 
			 Convent of Jesus and Mary Language College 36 
			 JFS School 5 
			 St. Gregory RC High School 68 
			   
			 Total NAGTY membership in Brent 413

Gifted and Talented Students

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what provision his Department makes for the development of gifted and talented students.

Jim Knight: The Department has a wide-ranging strategy in place to improve gifted and talented education with national support provided by the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY) at the University of Warwick. The recent White Paper Higher Standards, Better Standards, Better Schools for All sets out the next stages of this programme, including development of a national register of gifted and talented pupils and an expert teacher in every secondary school and for every group of primary schools.

Individual Learning Accounts

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent on individual learning accounts in each year from the scheme's inception to its closure; how many accounts were set up in each year; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: As at November 2001, some 2.6 million individuals in England had opened an individual learning account through the national framework launched in September 2000. Of these, over 347,000 were opened during 2000. (Prior to the launch of the national framework, over 200,000 members applied via TECs, of whom, nearly 80,000 transferred their membership to the national framework and are included in the overall total.)
	Total expenditure to the point of closure was 261 million, the majority representing payments to learning providers but also including Capita contract payments, development pilots and other related programme costs. The Department paid learning providers 223 million from the inception of the scheme to its closure. 31.1 million of this was paid during 2000 and 191.9 million during 2001.
	Key design principles of the national ILA framework were to encourage more people into learning by helping to tackle the financial barriers to learning and to allow people to take responsibility for their own learning. ILAs were not intended to be a guarantee of quality for learning or learning providers. Nevertheless, many account holders who used their account to book a course stated that the learning met or exceeded their expectations (York Consulting Research Report 295). The Government initially made the decision to withdraw the programme in light of an increasing number of complaints. Subsequently, Ministers closed the programme early because of the compelling and growing evidence of abuse.

Kings Copse Primary School

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what criteria have been taken into account in the advice of the school playing field advisory panel not to redevelop the Kings Copse primary school, in Hedge End, Southampton; what account was taken of educational provision for Hedge End as a whole; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Government remain committed to protecting school playing fields. In this respect there is a general presumption against the need to change the current pattern of school playing field provision by disposal or change of use. However, some playing fields can be genuinely surplus and it can make sense to allow them to be sold and the proceeds used to provide new or improved sports or education facilities.
	In the first instance, applications to dispose of school playing fields are considered by the independent school playing fields advisory panel. Each application is considered against strict criteria. Briefly, these fall under three headings which can be described as schools' needs, community use, and finance.
	In this particular case, the panel considered that Hampshire county council's application in respect of Kings Copse primary school failed to demonstrate how the schools' needs and finance criteria would be met.
	In accordance with normal procedure Hampshire county council will be given an opportunity to address the panel's concerns at its next meeting on 7 September 2006.

Learning and Skills Council

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of Learning and Skills Council funded learners aged over 19 years are studying for a  (a) level 1,  (b) level 2,  (c) level 3,  (d) level 4 and  (e) other qualifications; and what proportion are not studying for a qualification.

Bill Rammell: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) funds learning which is (a) for externally accredited qualifications, (b) for qualifications which are not externally accredited (e.g. college certificated) and (c) non-qualification based.
	It is possible to distinguish learning programmes by leveleven where that learning is non-qualification based. That is shown in the table which gives the number (in thousands) and proportion of learners aged 19 and over on LSC funded Further Education (FE), Work Based Learning (WBL) and Adult and Community Learning (ACL now know as personal and community development learning (PCDL)) provision in 2004-05.
	
		
			  Highest qualification level of learner  WBL learners (thousand)  WBL (percentage)  FE learners (thousand)  FE (percentage)  ACL learners (thousand)  ACL (percentage) 
			 Level 1 and Entry 3 1 1,489 43 814 91 
			 Level 2 118 52 968 28 58 7 
			 Level 3 103 45 475 14 14 2 
			 Level 4, 5 and HE 3 1 70 2 0 0 
			 Level not specified 0 0 475 14 4 0 
		
	
	However, it is not possible to fully distinguish between qualification and non-qualification based learning across all LSC funded learning. Non-accredited learning is currently funded mainly through safeguard personal and community development funding (PCDL), but also within WBL and FE. In WBL, Entry to Employment (a programme of other training and life skills for learners not in employment) has been introduced in response to the Cassells Review of Modern Apprenticeships. Funding for internally certificated learning is also available through FE institutions. Additionally, courses co-financed with European funding are not necessarily qualification based.
	However, in 2004-05 it is estimated that 39 per cent. of FE learners and 98 per cent. of PCDL learners were taking non-externally accredited courses (which could be either qualifications which are not externally accredited or non-qualification based).

Missing Children

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children born abroad have gone missing from local authority care in each of the last three years.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 5 July 2006
	Information about the numbers of unaccompanied asylum seeking children who have been looked after from 2002 to 2005 and the numbers of these who have gone missing from their agreed care placement for more than 24 hours is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) looked after and number with at least one missing placement in the years ending 31 March 2003-05( 1,2) 
			   Number of UASC looked after  Number with at least one missing placement( 1) 
			 2002-03 2,400 50 
			 2003-04 2,900 70 
			 2004-05 2,900 90 
			 (1) A 'missing' placement is defined as a child being absent from their agreed placement for over 24 hours.  (2) Children looked after who went missing more than once in the years ending 31 March 2003 until 2005 were only counted once.   Notes:  1. Figures exclude any children whose asylum seeking status ceased before going missing.  2. For the purpose of preserving confidentiality, national figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 and to the nearest 10 otherwise. 
		
	
	Local authorities may also be responsible for looking after other foreign nationals from time to time. Data about this group of children, in terms of missing from placement data by foreign country of birth, are not collected centrally.

Outdoor Learning

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  when he expects to publish guidance for schools on safety and education outside the classroom;
	(2)  what recent discussions his Department has had with teaching unions about outdoor learning and pupil safety.

Parmjit Dhanda: We expect to publish the Education Outside the Classroom Manifesto in the new school term. It will contain information about good safety management, and references to other relevant documents. A number of teaching unions responded to the public consultation on the draft vision and aims for the Education Outside the Classroom Manifesto that ran from November 2005 to February 2006. We will consult them further on next steps in relation to safety guidance once the manifesto is published.

Out-of-school Clubs

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much has been spent on out-of-school clubs as part of the National Childcare Strategy in each year since 1997; how many clubs received funding in each year; how often children attended such clubs in each year; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: As part of the National Childcare Strategy, the Department has made funding available to local authorities since 1999 for childcare provision of a range of types, including out-of-school clubs. However, information on expenditure specifically for out-of-school clubs, or attendance at such clubs, is not held centrally.

Overseas Students

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students from  (a) mainland China,  (b) Hong Kong,  (c) Macao,  (d) Taiwan and  (e) Singapore are estimated to be studying in the United Kingdom.

Bill Rammell: The latest available information is given in the table:
	
		
			  Students from Selected Countries( 1)  Enrolled at UK Higher Education Institutions, 2004/05 
			  Country  Number 
			 China (People's Republic of) 52,680 
			 Hong Kong 10,780 
			 Macao 145 
			 Taiwan 5,880 
			 Singapore 3,630 
			 (1) Refers to the country of the student's permanent or home address prior to entry to the programme of study.   Notes:  1. Figures are on a HESA Standard Registration Population basis.  2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.   Source:  Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record data.

Parliamentary Questions

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many parliamentary questions tabled to his Department were awaiting a reply on 10 July 2006; which of those had been waiting longer than  (a) two and  (b) three weeks for a reply; and what the reason for the delay was in each case.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department's parliamentary question tracking system is unable to break down the data as requested. The answer could be supplied only at a disproportionate cost.
	Departments aim to ensure that Members receive a substantive response to their named day question on the named day, and endeavour to answer ordinary written questions within a working week of being tabled.

Pathfinder Grants

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the value of Government pathfinder grants offered to Greater London local authorities was in  (a) 2004 and  (b) 2005, broken down by local authority.

Jim Knight: The following table shows the value of significant Government pathfinder grants offered to Greater London authorities by the DfES in 2004 and 2005. In some cases resource was allocated over two years and separate figures for the two years are not available.
	
		
			  Pathfinder grants made available to Greater London authorities by DfES in 2004-05 and 2005-06( 1) 
			   
			   Enterprise learning pathfinders( 2)  Key stage 2 language pathfinders( 2)  15-19 pathfinders( 3)  (academic year)  Building schools for the future pathfinders( 4)  Early support pathfinders 
			  Local authority  2004-05  2004-05  2004-05  2005-06  2005-06  2004-06 
			 Barking and Dagenham 0 88,150 0 0 0 200,000 
			 Barnet 38,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Bexley 3,500 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Brent 36,200 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Bromley 116,571 0 0 0 0 158,900 
			 Camden 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 City of London 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Croydon 50,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Ealing 0 0 0 0 0 200,000 
			 Enfield 0 100,000 0 0 0 236,000 
			 Greenwich 130,000 0 0 0 (3)213,025,000 0 
			 Hackney 185,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 18,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Haringey 72,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Harrow 0 0 384,778 0 0 159,000 
			 Havering 11,000 0 0 0 0 235,000 
			 Hillingdon 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Hounslow 110,940 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Islington 0 0 369,084 242,000 0 0 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Kingston upon Thames 76,770 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Lambeth 15,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Lewisham 10,200 0 250,000 0 (4)98,985.000 0 
			 Merton 24,000 0 0 0 0 200,000 
			 Newham 64,500 0 265,000 0 0 0 
			 Redbridge 63,400 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Richmond upon Thames 0 159,165 0 0 0 0 
			 Southwark 0 0 705,700 372,000 0 0 
			 Sutton 0 0 0 0 0 294,000 
			 Tower Hamlets 210,500 0 659,591 0 0 0 
			 Waltham Forest 0 0 0 0 0 200,000 
			 Wandsworth 75,000 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Westminster 67,828 0 560,000 0 0 0 
			 Total London 1,378,409 347,315 3,194,153 614,000 312,010,000 1,882,900 
			 (1) No money was paid out for diversity pathfinders in either year. (2) Pathfinder ended in 2004-05. (3) Partly paid through Learning and Skills Council. (4) Pathfinder began in 2005-06.  Notes: 1. Includes 116 million of PFI credits. 2. Includes 58 million of PFI credits.

Primary Teachers

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether there is an oversupply of qualified primary school teachers.

Jim Knight: On a national basis there is no evidence of oversupply, but there will of course be differences between regions. The table shows that most regions do have vacancies for primary teachers.
	A survey conducted by the Training and Development Agency for Schools this year among 6,590 newly qualified primary teachers showed that 95 per cent. had teaching jobs.
	This Department periodically reviews the need for teachers in future years and this informs the number of training places that will be offered. The model takes account of such factors as falling pupil rolls, retirements and teachers returning to the profession after having children.
	
		
			  Table 4: Full-time vacancy( 1)  rates in LA maintained nursery and primary schools in England by grade and Government Office Region:  January of each year 
			   Vacancies as a percentage of teachers in post( 2)  Number of vacancies 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006(p)  2006 (p) 
			 All vacancies 0.6 0.8 0.8 0.8 1.2 1.0 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.4 700 
			  Grade(3,4)
			 Head or Deputy/Assistant 0.9 1.4 13 1.0 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.7 0.8 0.8 280 
			 Head 0.6 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7 130 
			 Deputy head/Assistant head 1.3 2.0 1.7 1.3 1.8 1.2 1.1 1.0 0.8 0.9 150 
			 Classroom teacher 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 1.2 1.1 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.3 420 
			  Government Office Region
			 North East 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.3 0.3 30 
			 North West 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 60 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 0.1 0.4 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.8 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 70 
			 East Midlands 0.4 0.5 0.4 0.6 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.3 50 
			 West Midlands 0.2 0.4 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.3 70 
			 East of England 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.7 1.6 0.8 0.6 0.5 0.5 90 
			 London(5) 1.7 2.5 2.3 2.0 3.3 2.4 1.7 1.0 1.0 1.0 250 
			 South East 0.8 0.8 0.8 1.0 1.6 1.1 0.8 0.4 0.3 0.3 70 
			 South West 0.5 0.6 0.4 0.7 0.6 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 30 
			 England excluding London 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.9 0.8 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.3 460 
			 Total vacancies (numbers) 1,090 1,390 1,370 1,420 2,110 1,800 1,110 780 740 700  
			 (p) Provisional  (1.)Advertised vacancies for full-time permanent appointments (or appointments of at least one term's duration). Includes vacancies being filled on a temporary basis of less than one term.  (2) Teachers in post include full-time qualified regular teachers in (or on secondment from) maintained nursery and primary schools, plus the primary portion of full-time regular divided service, peripatetic, advisory and miscellaneous teachers.  (3).The number of teachers in post by grade is from the 618g survey for 2001 onwards, previous years were estimated using the Database of Teacher Records.  (4) The role of assistant head was created in 2001.  (5) The 2006 vacancy rates for the inner and the outer London weighting areas are 1.3 per cent. and 0.6 per cent. respectively, (in 2005 they were 1.2 per cent and 0.8per cent). Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because of rounding.   Source:  618g survey

Private Finance Initiative

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills by what total amount private finance initiative projects, for which his Department is responsible, that went over budget did so in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department for Education and Skills does not itself undertake private finance initiative (PFI) projects. PFI projects for the provision of schools are delivered through contracts between local authorities and private sector contractors.
	There are currently 100 such projects with signed contracts covering over 800 schools. The names, locations and other details of these schools can be accessed at www.teachernet.gov.uk/pfi.
	A key aspect of the private finance initiative is that the risk of projects going over budget in the construction phase is transferred to the private sector contractor and we do not have information on any such costs that may have accrued to various private sector contractors for this reason. The public sector does not pay anything until the contracted services are available and thereafter payments are linked to satisfactory performance and availability.

School Meals

James McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to reduce the quantity of trans fats present in school meals;
	(2)  whether he has set a maximum limit for the amount of trans fats to be present in school meals.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 12 July 2006
	The School Meals Review Panel considered the need for a specific standard for trans-fatty acids to be included within their proposals, and concluded against imposing a specific standard for the following reasons:
	Evidence shows that adult intakes of trans-fatty acids are well below the maximum threshold level for health;
	Adopting a standard to limit the fat content of school meals would contribute towards controlling levels of trans-fatty acids; and
	Food-based standards would include restrictions on foods which tend to be higher in trans-fatty acids (for example, savoury snacks and confectionery).
	The School Food Trust supported the panel's view that their proposals would sufficiently control trans- fatty acids, and that there was no need to develop a specific standard for trans-fatty acids which had the potential to complicate the new standards unnecessarily, making it more difficult for schools and local authorities to implement them.

School Places Appeals

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many appeals have been made by parents to Milton Keynes council in each of the last five years over the award of school places; and how many of these appeals were successful.

Jim Knight: holding answer 13 July 2006
	The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Appeals lodged by parents against non-admission of their children to maintained primary and secondary schoolseach academic year: 2000-01 to 2004-05Milton Keynes local authority area 
			   Maintained primary 
			Appeals heard  Appeals decided in parents favour 
			   Admission appeals lodged by parents  Number( 1)  Percentage  Number  Percentage( 2) 
			 2000/01 50 39 78.0 17 43.6 
			 2001/02 132 87 65.9 25 28.7 
			 2002/03 78 53 67.9 11 20.8 
			 2003/04 80 60 75.0 20 33.3 
			 2004/05 101 63 62.4 31 49.2 
		
	
	
		
			   Maintained secondary 
			Appeals heard  Appeals decided in parents favour 
			   Admission appeals lodged by parents  Number  Percentage( 1)  Number  Percentage( 2) 
			 2000/01 230 207 90.0 92 44.4 
			 2001/02 125 90 72.0 29 32.2 
			 2002/03 227 205 90.3 90 43.9 
			 2003/04 200 170 85.0 50 29.4 
			 2004/05 424 371 87.5 127 34.2 
			 (1) Number of appeals heard by a committee expressed as a percentage of the number of appeals lodged by parents. (2) Number of appeals decided in parents' favour expressed as a percentage of the number of appeals heard by a committee.  Source: Schools Census and Admission Appeals Survey

School Staff (Assaults)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many assaults on school staff were recorded in each local education authority in the last year for which figures are available; and what each figure represents in terms of assaults on staff per thousand pupils.

Jim Knight: holding answer 10 July 2006
	The number of assaults on school staff is not collected centrally.
	For the academic year 2004/05, information is available on the reasons for pupil exclusions. These reasons include physical assault against an adult. A local authority breakdown of the number of pupils who have been excluded from school (permanently or for a fixed period) for physical assault against an adult, together with total numbers of exclusions, is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Maintained primary, secondary and special schools( 1,2) . Permanent and fixed period exclusions for physical assault against an adult( 3)  and total number of exclusions (all reasons) numbers and rates per thousand pupils 2004/05: by local authority area 
			Permanent exclusions 
			Number of pupils on roll( 4)  Exclusions for physical assault against an adult  Exclusions per 1,000 pupils( 5)  Total number of exclusions (all reasons)  Total exclusions per 1,000 pupils( 5) 
			   England 7,606,040 1,270 0.2 9,400 1.2 
			
			   North East 398,660 90 0.2 460 1.2 
			 841 Darlington 15,404 (6) (6) 30 2.2 
			 840 Durham 75,863 16 0.2 90 1.2 
			 390 Gateshead 28,840 10 0.3 30 1.1 
			 805 Hartlepool 16,035 (6) (6) 20 1.4 
			 806 Middlesbrough 20,165 8 0.4 20 0.9 
			 391 Newcastle upon Tyne 37,260 17 0.5 60 1.7 
			 392 North Tyneside 30,600 (7) (7) 30 0.9 
			 929 Northumberland 50,547 9 0.2 70 1.4 
			 807 Redcar and Cleveland 24,083  (7) 20 1.0 
			 393 South Tyneside 23,762 12 0.5 40 1.9 
			 808 Stockton-on-Tees 30,857 8 0.3 20 0.7 
			 394 Sunderland 45,241 (6) (6) 20 0.3 
			
			   North West 1,086,590 240 0.2 1,440 1.3 
			 889 Blackburn with Darwen 24,603 (6) (6) 30 1.2 
			 890 Blackpool 21,190 9 0.4 60 2.8 
			 350 Bolton 45,797 6 0.1 60 1.4 
			 351 Bury 28,254 (6) (6) 30 1.2 
			 875 Cheshire 104,163 30 0.3 170 1.6 
			 909 Cumbria 76,831 11 0.1 60 0.8 
			 876 Halton 18,910 (6) (6) 50 2.4 
			 340 Knowsley 26,438 8 0.3 40 1.4 
			 888 Lancashire 173,101 62 0.4 270 1.6 
			 341 Liverpool 73,239 (6) (6) 80 1.1 
			 352 Manchester 65,644 27 0.4 80 1.3 
			 353 Oldham 40,513 7 0.2 40 1.0 
			 354 Rochdale 34,820 (7)  40 1.1 
			 355 Salford 32,960 16 0.5 90 2.6 
			 343 Sefton 45,132 (7) (7) 30 0.7 
			 342 St. Helens 28,272 0 0.0 (7)  
			 356 Stockport 40,944 9 0.2 50 1.2 
			 357 Tameside 36,731 12 0.3 60 1.7 
			 358 Trafford 35,964 (6) (6) 20 0.5 
			 877 Warrington 32,137 6 0.2 50 1.4 
			 359 Wigan 48,712 12 0.2 70 1.4 
			 344 Wirral 52,231 (6) (6) 60 1.2 
			
			   Yorkshire and the 806,660 150 0.2 840 1.0 
			 370 Barnsley 34,496 (6) (6) (7) (7) 
			 380 Bradford 86,686 7 0.1 60 0.7 
			 381 Calderdale 34,765 (7) (7) 50 1.3 
			 371 Doncaster 50,302 17 0.3 90 1.8 
			 811 East Riding of Yorkshire 50,036 6 0.1 30 0.6 
			 810 Kingston Upon Hull, City 39,262 34 0.9 80 2.1 
			 382 Kirklees 63,113 8 0.1 60 1.0 
			 383 Leeds 111,538 24 0.2 120 1.1 
			 812 North East Lincolnshire 26,023  (7) 60 2.4 
			 813 North Lincolnshire 25,047 0 0.0 0 0.0 
			 815 North Yorkshire 88,139 9 0.1 60 0.7 
			 372 Rotherham 45,113 7 0.1 30 0.6 
			 373 Sheffield 75,753 16 0.2 100 1.3 
			 384 Wakefield 52,231 (7) (7) 50 1.0 
			 816 York 24,159  (7) 40 1.7 
			
			   East Midlands 667,600 160 0.2 970 1.5 
			 831 Derby 37,832 14 0.4 90 2.2 
			 830 Derbyshire 115,455 19 0.2 140 1.2 
			 856 Leicester 47,168 22 0.5 80 1.7 
			 855 Leicestershire 96,577 20 0.2 130 1.4 
			 925 Lincolnshire 102,884 20 0.2 180 1.8 
			 928 Northamptonshire 103,694 34 0.3 140 1.3 
			 892 Nottingham 38,195 17 0.4 70 1.9 
			 891 Nottinghamshire 120,891 18 0.2 150 1.2 
			 857 Rutland 4,907 0 0.0 0 0.0 
			
			   West Midlands 864,790 120 0.1 1,060 1.2 
			 330 Birmingham 175,226 37 0.2 360 2.1 
			 331 Coventry 49,307 (6) (6) 10 0.1 
			 332 Dudley 50,251 7 0.1 90 1.8 
			 884 Herefordshire 24,005 7 0.3 30 1.1 
			 333 Sandwell 50,581 (7)  70 1.3 
			 893 Shropshire 40,761 (7) (7) 40 0.9 
			 334 Solihull 36,360 7 0.2 60 1.6 
			 860 Staffordshire 128,800 20 0.2 140 1.1 
			 861 Stoke-on-Trent 36,594 (6) (6) 10 0.4 
			 894 Telford and Wrekin 26,491 10 0.4 40 1.5 
			 335 Walsall 48,005 (7)  30 0.5 
			 937 Warwickshire 76,698 10 0.1 150 1.9 
			 336 Wolverhampton 40,675 (6) (6) 20 0.4 
			 885 Worcestershire 81,031 (6) (6) 30 0.3 
			
			   East of England 842,380 110 0.1 930 1.1 
			 820 Bedfordshire 63,800 11 0.2 130 2.0 
			 873 Cambridgeshire 77,582 (6) (6) 10 0.1 
			 881 Essex 201,078 45 0.2 200 1.0 
			 919 Hertfordshire 174,931 12 0.1 240 1.4 
			 821 Luton 31,075  (7) 30 1.0 
			 926 Norfolk 113,477 (7) (7) 100 0.8 
			 874 Peterborough 28,680 (6) (6) 30 1.0 
			 882 Southend-on-Sea 27,270 (7) (7) 40 1.4 
			 935 Suffolk 101,555 20 0.2 150 1.5 
			 883 Thurrock 22,936   20 0.9 
			
			   London 1,060,180 160 0.2 1,510 1.4 
			
			   Inner London 360,840 60 0.2 420 1.2 
			 202 Camden 21,565 (6) (6) 10 0.6 
			 201 City of London(8) 224 n/a n/a (6) (6) 
			 204 Hackney 25,572 (7) (7) 30 1.1 
			 205 Hammersmith and Fulham 17,102 (6) (6) 20 0.9 
			 309 Haringey 33,565 7 0.2 30 0.8 
			 206 Islington 22,694 (7) (7) 10 0.4 
			 207 Kensington and Chelsea 10,664 (7) (7) 20 1.6 
			 208 Lambeth 28,220 0 0.0 40 1.5 
			 209 Lewisham 34,117 (6) (6) 20 0.7 
			 316 Newham 48,646 9 0.2 80 1.7 
			 210 Southwark 33,760 6 0.2 40 1.1 
			 211 Tower Hamlets 36,728 7 0.2 40 1.1 
			 212 Wandsworth 28,286  (7) 50 1.9 
			 213 Westminster 19,693 (6) (6) 30 1.7 
			
			   Outer London 699,350 110 0.2 1,090 1.6 
			 301 Barking and Dagenham 31,005 13 0.4 50 1.5 
			 302 Barnet 45,939 13 0.3 60 1.2 
			 303 Bexley 39,513 (7) (7) 60 1.6 
			 304 Brent 39,396 15 0.4 90 2.2 
			 305 Bromley 46,894 (6) (6) 60 1.2 
			 306 Croydon 49,099 (7)  100 2.1 
			 307 Ealing 41,644 7 0.2 80 1.9 
			 308 Enfield 49,670 (6) (6) 60 1.2 
			 203 Greenwich 36,303 19 0.5 110 3.0 
			 310 Harrow 28,772 (6) (6) 50 1.8 
			 311 Havering 36,568   40 1.1 
			 312 Hillingdon 42,027 (7) (7) 60 1.4 
			 313 Hounslow 35,840 0 0.0 80 2.1 
			 314 Kingston upon Thames 21,431 (6) (6) 10 0.3 
			 315 Merton 23,547  (7) 30 1.4 
			 317 Redbridge 44,622 (7) (7) 60 1.3 
			 318 Richmond upon Thames 20,108 0 0.0 20 1.1 
			 319 Sutton 31,277 (6) (6) 30 0.8 
			 320 Waltham Forest(8) 35,692 n/a n/a 60 1.7 
			
			   South East 1,161,570 160 0.1 1,400 1.2 
			 867 Bracknell Forest 15,119 (6) (6) 40 2.8 
			 846 Brighton and Hove 29,961 11 0.4 40 1.2 
			 825 Buckinghamshire 75,866 (7)  50 0.6 
			 845 East Sussex 66,612 16 0.2 110 1.7 
			 850 Hampshire 173,289 17 0.1 160 0.9 
			 921 Isle of Wight 19,586 (6) (6) 10 0.4 
			 886 Kent 212,811 26 0.1 360 1.7 
			 887 Medway 43,998 6 0.1 50 1.2 
			 826 Milton Keynes 36,186 6 0.2 50 1.4 
			 931 Oxfordshire 85,281 6 0.1 40 0.4 
			 851 Portsmouth 24,722 6 0.2 20 0.8 
			 870 Reading 16,522 7 0.4 30 1.6 
			 871 Slough 20,274 (6) (6) 10 0.5 
			 852 Southampton 28,576 9 0.3 30 1.1 
			 936 Surrey 140,069 19 0.1 150 1.1 
			 869 West Berkshire 24,626 (6) (6) 30 1.3 
			 938 West Sussex 105,642 12 0.1 160 1.5 
			 868 Windsor and Maidenhead 18,984 (6) (6) 30 1.6 
			 872 Wokingham 23,444 (7) (7) 40 1.5 
			
			   South West 717,610 70 0.1 780 1.1 
			 800 Bath and North East Sor 25,161 (6) (6) 40 1.6 
			 837 Bournemouth 20,891 (6) (6) 20 1.1 
			 801 Bristol, City of 46,702 (6) (6) 50 1.1 
			 908 Cornwall 73,227 (7) (7) 120 1.6 
			 878 Devon 97,698 (7) (7) 60 0.7 
			 835 Dorset 55,849 (7) (7) 50 0.8 
			 916 Gloucestershire 85,937 12 0.1 90 1.0 
			 420 Isles of Scilly 251 0 0.0 0 0.0 
			 802 North Somerset 28,141 (6) (6) 20 0.6 
			 879 Plymouth 39,243 7 0.2 40 1.1 
			 836 Poole 19,305 (6) (6) 20 1.0 
			 933 Somerset 71,328 12 0.2 70 1.0 
			 803 South Gloucestershire 39,981 (6) (6) 70 1.7 
			 866 Swindon 28,735 6 0.2 30 1.0 
			 880 Torbay 19,625 (6) (6) 10 0.7 
			 865 Wiltshire 65,540 11 0.2 90 1.3 
		
	
	
		
			Fixed period exclusions 
			Numbers of pupils on roll( 4)  Exclusions for physical assault against an adult  Exclusions per 1,000 pupils( 5)  Total number of exclusions (all reasons)  Total exclusions per 1,000 pupils( 5) 
			   England 7,606,040 18,480 2.4 389,560 51.2 
			
			   North East 398,660 830 2.1 17,580 44.1 
			 841 Darlington 15,404 78 5.1 1,430 92.5 
			 840 Durham 75,863 145 1.9 4,800 63.3 
			 390 Gateshead 28,840 41 1.4 710 24.7 
			 805 Hartlepool 16,035 10 0.6 590 36.9 
			 806 Middlesbrough 20,165 37 1.8 730 36.3 
			 391 Newcastle upon Tyne 37,260 106 2.8 1,930 51.7 
			 392 North Tyneside 30,600 50 1.6 760 24.8 
			 929 Northumberland 50,547 98 1.9 2,450 48.4 
			 807 Redcar and Cleveland 24,083 44 1.8 880 36.4 
			 393 South Tyneside 23,762 49 2.1 1,070 44.9 
			 808 Stockton-on-Tees 30,857 120 3.9 1,050 34.1 
			 394 Sunderland 45,241 54 1.2 1,180 26.1 
			
			   North West 1,086,590 2,700 2.5 56,720 52.2 
			 889 Blackburn with Darwen 24,603 108 4.4 1,400 56.7 
			 890 Blackpool 21,190 63 3.0 1,440 67.8 
			 350 Bolton 45,797 133 2.9 3,000 65.4 
			 351 Bury 28,254 68 2.4 1,780 62.9 
			 875 Cheshire 104,163 249 2.4 6,270 60.2 
			 909 Cumbria 76,831 139 1.8 5,460 71.0 
			 876 Halton 18,910 27 1.4 570 29.9 
			 340 Knowsley 26,438 110 4.2 1,030 38.8 
			 888 Lancashire 173,101 476 2.7 9,480 54.8 
			 341 Liverpool 73,239 95 1.3 1,830 25.0 
			 352 Manchester 65,644 358 5.5 4,420 67.3 
			 353 Oldham 40,513 91 2.2 2,640 65.1 
			 354 Rochdale 34,820 87 2.5 1,780 51.2 
			 355 Salford 32,960 102 3.1 1,980 60.0 
			 343 Sefton 45,132 27 0.6 540 11.9 
			 342 St. Helens 28,272 42 1.5 1,410 49.9 
			 356 Stockport 40,944 102 2.5 2,350 57.4 
			 357 Tameside 36,731 107 2.9 2,420 65.9 
			 358 Trafford 35,964 50 1.4 1,260 34.9 
			 877 Warrington 32,137 74 2.3 2,070 64.3 
			 359 Wigan 48,712 174 3.6 2,580 53.0 
			 344 Wirral 52,231 22 0.4 1,040 19.9 
			
			   Yorkshire and the 806,660 2,340 2.9 47,650 59.1 
			 370 Barnsley 34,496 71 2.1 1,430 41.4 
			 380 Bradford 86,686 236 2.7 4,100 47.2 
			 381 Calderdale 34,765 91 2.6 1,660 47.8 
			 371 Doncaster 50,302 149 3.0 3,090 61.4 
			 811 East Riding of Yorkshire 50,036 100 2.0 2,550 51.0 
			 810 Kingston Upon Hull, City 39,262 288 7.3 3,110 79.1 
			 382 Kirklees 63,113 197 3.1 3,780 59.9 
			 383 Leeds 111,538 368 3.3 7,610 68.2 
			 812 North East Lincolnshire 26,023 99 3.8 2,310 88.8 
			 813 North Lincolnshire 25,047 71 2.8 1,940 77.3 
			 815 North Yorkshire 88,139 164 1.9 3,610 40.9 
			 372 Rotherham 45,113 164 3.6 2,220 49.3 
			 373 Sheffield 75,753 157 2.1 5,090 67.2 
			 384 Wakefield 52,231 138 2.6 3,800 72.7 
			 816 York 24,159 48 2.0 1,360 56.2 
			
			   East Midlands 667,600 1,790 2.7 34,610 51.8 
			 831 Derby 37,832 99 2.6 2,600 68.6 
			 830 Derbyshire 115,455 226 2.0 5,000 43.3 
			 856 Leicester 47,168 108 2.3 3,030 64.2 
			 855 Leicestershire 96,577 167 1.7 4,080 42.3 
			 925 Lincolnshire 102,884 257 2.5 4,470 43.4 
			 928 Northamptonshire 103,694 381 3.7 6,280 60.5 
			 892 Nottingham 38,195 241 6.3 2,260 59.3 
			 891 Nottinghamshire 120,891 300 2.5 6,730 55.7 
			 857 Rutland 4,907 9 1.8 160 32.4 
			
			   West Midlands 864,790 2,170 2.5 41,210 47.7 
			 330 Birmingham 175,226 505 2.9 8,300 47.4 
			 331 Coventry 49,307 142 2.9 1,470 29.9 
			 332 Dudley 50,251 66 1.3 2,840 56.5 
			 884 Herefordshire 24,005 62 2.6 1,500 62.6 
			 333 Sandwell 50,581 120 2.4 2,170 42.8 
			 893 Shropshire 40,761 93 2.3 2,230 54.7 
			 334 Solihull 36,360 70 1.9 1,680 46.3 
			 860 Staffordshire 128,800 172 1.3 5,700 44.3 
			 861 Stoke-on-Trent 36,594 136 3.7 2,410 65.8 
			 894 Telford and Wrekin 26,491 284 10.7 2,320 87.5 
			 335 Walsall 48,005 127 2.6 2,770 57.6 
			 937 Warwickshire 76,698 119 1.6 3,020 39.4 
			 336 Wolverhampton 40,675 55 1.4 1,260 31.1 
			 885 Worcestershire 81,031 221 2.7 3,530 43.6 
			
			   East of England 842,380 1,650 2.0 40,860 48.5 
			 820 Bedfordshire 63,800 115 1.8 2,520 39.5 
			 873 Cambridgeshire 77,582 89 1.1 2,510 32.3 
			 881 Essex 201,078 472 2.3 12,210 60.7 
			 919 Hertfordshire 174,931 249 1.4 6,730 38.5 
			 821 Luton 31,075 72 2.3 1,250 40.1 
			 926 Norfolk 113,477 177 1.6 5,620 49.5 
			 874 Peterborough 28,680 54 1.9 1,490 51.8 
			 882 Southend-on-Sea 27,270 132 4.8 1,480 54.4 
			 935 Suffolk 101,555 214 2.1 5,310 52.3 
			 883 Thurrock 22,936 71 3.1 1,750 76.3 
			
			   London 1,060,180 2,490 2.3 42,850 40.4 
			
			   Inner London 360,840 1,110 3.1 14,110 39.1 
			 202 Camden 21,565 69 3.2 1,020 47.2 
			 201 City of London(8) 224 0 0.0  (7) 
			 204 Hackney 25,572 143 5.6 1,240 48.6 
			 205 Hammersmith and Fulham 17,102 55 3.2 810 47.3 
			 309 Haringey 33,565 121 3.6 1,650 49.1 
			 206 Islington 22,694 87 3.8 530 23.2 
			 207 Kensington and Chelsea 10,664 25 2.3 340 32.0 
			 208 Lambeth 28,220 34 1.2 1,090 38.7 
			 209 Lewisham 34,117 103 3.0 1,310 38.5 
			 316 Newham 48,646 39 0.8 1,140 23.4 
			 210 Southwark 33,760 119 3.5 1,240 36.6 
			 211 Tower Hamlets 36,728 100 2.7 1,260 34.2 
			 212 Wandsworth 28,286 157 5.6 1,580 55.7 
			 213 Westminster 19,693 61 3.1 910 46.4 
			
			   Outer London 699,350 1,370 2.0 28,740 41.1 
			 301 Barking and Dagenham 31,005 79 2.5 820 26.6 
			 302 Barnet 45,939 86 1.9 1,490 32.5 
			 303 Bexley 39,513 53 1.3 1,720 43.4 
			 304 Brent 39,396 108 2.7 1,860 47.3 
			 305 Bromley 46,894 40 0.9 1,950 41.7 
			 306 Croydon 49,099 94 1.9 1,310 26.6 
			 307 Ealing 41,644 68 1.6 2,000 48.1 
			 308 Enfield 49,670 110 2.2 2,050 41.3 
			 203 Greenwich 36,303 227 6.3 2,750 75.6 
			 310 Harrow 28,772 47 1.6 1,090 37.9 
			 311 Havering 36,568 44 1.2 1,820 49.9 
			 312 Hillingdon 42,027 65 1.5 1,140 27.0 
			 313 Hounslow 35,840 0 0.0 1,270 35.5 
			 314 Kingston upon Thames 21,431 15 0.7 700 32.8 
			 315 Merton 23,547 77 3.3 1,280 54.3 
			 317 Redbridge 44,622 29 0.6 450 10.0 
			 318 Richmond upon Thames 20,108 22 1.1 900 45.0 
			 319 Sutton 31,277 43 1.4 1,440 46.1 
			 320 Waltham Forest(8) 35,692 167 4.7 2,690 75.3 
			
			   South East 1,161,570 2,810 2.4 67,820 58.4 
			 867 Bracknell Forest 15,119 18 1.2 670 44.4 
			 846 Brighton and Hove 29,961 147 4.9 2,210 73.6 
			 825 Buckinghamshire 75,866 123 1.6 2,410 31.8 
			 845 East Sussex 66,612 262 3.9 5,940 89.1 
			 850 Hampshire 173,289 449 2.6 11 ,730 67.7 
			 921 Isle of Wight 19,586 47 2.4 1,010 51.5 
			 886 Kent 212,811 353 1.7 11,900 55.9 
			 887 Medway 43,998 139 3.2 2,830 64.3 
			 826 Milton Keynes 36,186 32 0.9 1,140 31.4 
			 931 Oxfordshire 85,281 221 2.6 4,310 50.5 
			 851 Portsmouth 24,722 209 8.5 2,980 120.6 
			 870 Reading 16,522 69 4.2 1,050 63.3 
			 871 Slough 20,274 32 1.6 540 26.5 
			 852 Southampton 28,576 159 5.6 2,890 101.1 
			 936 Surrey 140,069 210 1.5 7,110 50.8 
			 869 West Berkshire 24,626 38 1.5 1,580 64.1 
			 938 West Sussex 105,642 228 2.2 5,800 54.9 
			 868 Windsor and Maidenhead 18,984 20 1.1 700 36.9 
			 872 Wokingham 23,444 49 2.1 1,050 44.7 
			
			   South West 717,610 1,710 2.4 40,280 56.1 
			 800 Bath and North East Sor 25,161 40 1.6 1,800 71.7 
			 837 Bournemouth 20,891 45 2.2 1,120 53.4 
			 801 Bristol, City of 46,702 297 6.4 5,610 120.1 
			 908 Cornwall 73,227 85 1.2 3,160 43.2 
			 878 Devon 97,698 201 2.1 5,680 58.1 
			 835 Dorset 55,849 39 0.7 1,680 30.2 
			 916 Gloucestershire 85,937 123 1.4 3,490 40.6 
			 420 Isles of Scilly 251 0 0.0 0 0.0 
			 802 North Somerset 28,141 94 3.3 1,440 51.2 
			 879 Plymouth 39,243 96 2.4 1,390 35.5 
			 836 Poole 19,305 69 3.6 1,340 69.2 
			 933 Somerset 71,328 206 2.9 4,310 60.4 
			 803 South Gloucestershire 39,981 67 1.7 2,360 59.0 
			 866 Swindon 28,735 143 5.0 2,190 76.0 
			 880 Torbay 19,625 79 4.0 970 49.4 
			 865 Wiltshire 65,540 126 1.9 3,750 57.3 
			 n/a = not available.  (1) Includes middle schools as deemed.  (2) Includes maintained special schools, excludes nonmaintained special schools.  (3) The distribution of exclusions by reason has been derived from the Termly Exclusions survey and applied to the number of permanent exclusions as confirmed by LEAs as part of the Schools census checking exercise.  (4) The number (headcount) of all pupils (excluding dually registered pupils) in January 2005.  (5) The number of exclusions in 2004/05 divided by how many thousands of pupils were on roll in January 2005.  (6) Less than 3, or a rate based on less than 3.  (7) Less than 5, or a rate based on less than 5.  (8) The reasons for permanent exclusions are not available for Waltham Forest and City of London.   Notes:  1. National and regional totals and total number of exclusions have been rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.

Schools (Employee Vetting)

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance his Department gives schools on the subject of vetting potential employees; and what changes to this guidance are planned should the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill be passed.

Parmjit Dhanda: Pre-appointment vetting checks are necessary to ensure that people who are appointed to work with children are safe to do so. My Department's guidance to schools on the vetting of potential employees is contained in Child Protection: Preventing Unsuitable People from Working with Children in the Education Service (May 2002) and Criminal Records Bureau: Managing the Demand for Disclosures (December 2002).
	As the Secretary of State announced on 20 June, we are preparing consolidated guidance to replace these documents. This will be issued for consultation shortly.
	The guidance will be further revised in the light of the requirements placed on schools by the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill.

Schools Sports

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what criteria Ofsted uses to assess school sporting provision.

Jim Knight: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Maurice Smith, has written to my hon. Friend and a copy of his reply has been placed in the Library.
	 Letter from Maurice J. Smith dated 5 July 2006:
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for reply.
	You asked what criteria Ofsted use to assess school sporting provision.
	Since September 2005 Ofsted's school inspections have focused on the school's overall effectiveness. During one of these inspections Ofsted inspects sports provision in a very general way as part of the inspection of the quality of education provided. There is not a specific focus on physical education unless it is a particularly important subject in the school. Schools with specialist sports college status, for example, will have their distinctive aims and characteristics taken into account and the extent to which the specialist aims are met.
	Every child matters: The Framework for the inspection of schools in England from September 2005 sets out the principles for school inspections. The guidance outlines what inspection will cover and the work that inspectors need to do. This common inspection schedule for schools and other post-1 provision is supported by non-statutory guidance, published in two parts:
	Guidance on using the schedule
	Guidance on conducting inspections.
	The Guidance on using the schedule contains specific criteria and benchmarks to support inspectors in knowing where to pitch their judgments. Equally, they should be an aid to schools in the process of self-evaluation. The amount of evidence on physical education will vary according to the priorities and focus of the inspection.
	In addition to section five inspections, Ofsted has a new subject inspection programme which, in the case of physical education, involves 30 primary and 30 secondary schools each year. Every third year a report on physical education is published using the accumulated evidence from these visits. The first is due in 2008. General guidance is provided for the HMI and additional inspectors who are involved with this programme. Ofsted is currently developing subject-specific guidance which exists in draft form. The contents are intended to help inspectors and all other staff to evaluate standards and achievement, quality of provision, leadership and management and other factors that might have a bearing on what learners achieve in physical education. For example, when reporting on the standards achieved by pupils in physical education inspectors:
	interpret test, examination results and awards gained by pupils
	judge the standards of work seen, highlighting what pupils do well and could do better
	evaluate how well pupils are achieving, evaluating standards by the ends of the different key stages and highlighting any differences in achievement for different groups of pupils.
	During the inspection, an inspector's view of standards is supplemented by:
	examining pupils' targets in physical education and the basis on which they were set and progress towards achieving them any performance trends over time
	identifying strengths and weaknesses in attainment against the knowledge, skills and understanding set out in the National Curriculum attainment target.
	Grade characteristics are illustrated in order to help inspectors make judgments. For example, when judging standards in physical education to be good, inspectors will look for the following characteristics:
	Standards achieved in examination courses are good, above national averages or as reflected in contextual value added. Standards show upward trends over time. Learners' skills, knowledge and understanding in most of the four aspects of the attainment target and across most areas of activity are good. The progress of the great majority of learners, across key stages, is good and for some it is very good, and show that almost all achieve well compared with their prior attainment and ability in physical education, and compared with those in similar schools.
	When making judgements on standards and achievement, inspectors will also look for evidence on the 10 high quality outcomes promoted by the Physical Education, School Sport and Club Links (PESSCL) strategy.
	Most subject inspections focus on a specific subject issue, identified from the previous inspection, performance data or as part of a specific survey on, for example, the PESSCL strategy. For the subject 'issue' being inspected, a single grade is required and for this the general grade criteria have been interpreted in terms of the particular issue. Guidance pages are provided for each issue to support grading.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Jim Knight and will be placed in the Library of both Houses.

Sign Language

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what provision there is for British sign language in the school curriculum; and what plans he has for changes to that provision.

Jim Knight: British sign language is not recognised as a foreign language for the purposes of the national curriculum, or for the prospective entitlement for pupils learning a language at Key Stage 2. Schools may, however, choose to offer pupils the opportunity to study British sign language over and above the national curriculum requirements. We have no plans to change this.

Somali Children

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of Somali children in  (a) primary and  (b) secondary education in each education authority in England.

Jim Knight: The requested information is not held centrally.
	As part of the Pupil Level Annual Schools Census (PLASC), schools are required to record ethnicity data to reflect the main categories used in the 2001 National Population Census. Children of Somali ethnic origin are recorded under the category of Black African. Following a consultation exercise in 2002, local authorities (LAs) were given the option of using extended ethnicity categories in their schools if they felt that the main ones did not meet their local management needs. The extended ethnicity categories do include a separate Somali code but not all LAs have chosen to use the extended categories. The majority of authorities use a mixture of main and extended codes and, therefore, the Department does not hold complete data for the extended ethnic background categories.

Specialist School Teachers

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the number of vacancies for trained specialist school teachers in  (a) English,  (b) mathematics,  (c) science,  (d) modern languages and  (e) information and communications technologies in rural areas in the most recent period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many  (a) vacancies and  (b) temporary replacements there were for head teachers in (i) rural and (ii) non-rural areas in the most recent period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not available in the required format because vacancy level information is collected from a local authority rather than a school level survey and it is not possible to define which of these vacancies are in schools in rural and non-rural areas or which relate to specialist schools.
	Table 1 provides the number of full-time classroom teacher vacancies in local authority maintained secondary schools in England in English, mathematics, science, languages and information technology in January 2006.
	
		
			  Table 1: Full-time classroom teacher vacancy( 1 ) rates in local authority maintained secondary schools in England by subject, January 2006 
			  ( 2) Number of vacancies 2006 
			 English 160 
			 Mathematics 190 
			 All sciences 210 
			 Languages 40 
			 Information Technology 90 
			 (1) Advertised vacancies for full-time permanent appointments (or appointments of at least one term's duration). Includes vacancies being filled on a temporary basis of less than one term. (2) Provisional.  Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source:  Survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies, (618g) 
		
	
	Table 2 shows the number of full-time head teacher vacancies and full-time temporarily filled head teacher posts in local authority maintained schools in England in January 2006. For comparison with table 1, it also shows figures for maintained secondary schools only.
	
		
			  Table 2: Full-time head teacher vacancies and full-time temporarily filled head teacher posts in local authority maintained schools in England, January 2006( 2) 
			   All maintained schools  Maintained secondary schools 
			 Full-time head teacher vacancies 180 30 
			 Full-time temporarily filled head teacher posts(1) 660 80 
			 (1) Temporarily-filled full-time permanent appointments. The definition used is wider than the vacancy definition (bullet points (b) and (c) below are in addition to the normal vacancy definition). A post is included in this row of the table: a. where there is no incumbent who is expected to return to the post; b. whether or not filled on a temporary basis, i.e. either without a contract or on a contract of les than one year; c. whether or not advertised; d. where an appointment has been made by not yet taken up. (2) Provisional Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source:  Survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies, (618g)

Student Finance

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance has been given to employers regarding the repayment of income-contingent student loans; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) issues a booklet entitled Collection of Student Loans, which outlines an employer's responsibilities in relation to making student loan deductions from pay and tables which show how much they should deduct. This guidance is available in hardcopy or employers can access it via HMRC's employer website. Employers are also able to obtain help and further guidance from the HMRC Employer Helpline and face-to-face advice is available at regular HMRC employer events.

Student Finance

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many graduates contacted the Student Loans Company because they believe they were paying too much of their income-contingent student loan back in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: The information requested is not available. While the Student Loans Company does record information about categories of inquiries made by customers at individual account level, it is unable to provide a global picture to this level of detail.

Student Finance

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many graduates are repaying student loans on a self-assessment basis; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: As at June 2006, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reports that 5,400(1) borrowers are recorded as repaying on a self-assessment basis (self-employed). An additional 80,700(1) borrowers are recorded as repaying under both PAYE and self-assessment arrangements (self-assessment and in employment). These figures reflect the status at the point at which HMRC originally matched the borrowers to taxpayer records.
	(1) Numbers are rounded to the nearest hundred.

Student Numbers

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which local authorities had an increase in the number of students in  (a) Key Stage 3 and  (b) Key Stage 4 between 2001 and 2005.

Jim Knight: The available information has been placed in the Library.
	This shows that 83 local authorities have reported an increase in the number of pupils in the Key Stage 3 age group between 2001 and 2005; and over the same period, 126 local authorities have reported an increase in the number of pupils in the Key Stage 4 age group.

Student Numbers

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of students continued full-time education after the age of 16 years from comprehensive secondary schools of  (a) fewer than 100,  (b) 100-199,  (c) 200-299,  (d) 300-399,  (e) 400-499,  (f) 500-599,  (g) 600-700 and  (h) over 700 students in (i) rural areas and (ii) non-rural areas in the last period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: This information is not available. The Youth Cohort Study (YCS) estimates that overall 70 per cent. of young people in England who had attended a comprehensive school in year 11 in 2002/03 were in full-time education in the spring following completion of compulsory education. Neither the breakdown by size of school or rural/non-rural area is available from the YCS.

Teacher Recruitment

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent on Government media advertisements and promotional activities seeking to attract people to the teaching profession in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: The costs below relate to the costs of advertising media and include TV, press, radio, magazine, online and outdoor advertising. All costs include VAT.
	
		
			
			 2001-2002 6,648,414 
			 2002-2003 7,761,572 
			 2003-2004 8,620,899 
			 2004-2005 7,815,576 
			 2005-2006 8,101,055 
		
	
	The key advertising objective is to increase the number of able and committed people recruited to teaching, particularly in the secondary priority subjects (mathematics, sciences, modern languages, religious education, music, design and technology and information and communications technology). The last five years have seen successive increases in the numbers of people entering initial teacher training.

Newly Qualified Teachers

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many newly qualified teachers had not taken up full-time teaching posts one year after qualification in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: Information on the number of newly qualified teachers in service is available for March of each year. The latest information available is March 2004. The following table provides the number of teachers who attained qualified teacher status (QTS) in each year from 1999 to 2003 and the number of those who were not in full-time service in March of the following year. This number will include those in part time service.
	The proportion of qualifiers without teaching service usually falls substantially over the first year or two after qualification, and in the long-term has been around 9-10 per cent.
	
		
			  Teachers gaining qualified teacher status (QTS)( 1)  in England: 1999 to 2003, service position in March of the following year. 
			   Calendar year of qualification 
			   1999  2000  2001  2002( 1)  2003( 1,2) 
			 Total gaining QTS(3) 24,190 21,880 21,870 23,050 24,580 
			 Of these(4):  
			 In full-time maintained sector service in England 16,590 15,690 16,650 17,510 17,510 
			 In full-time service elsewhere(5) 920 790 730 800 900 
			 Not in full-time service 6.690 5.,390 4,490 4,740 6,170 
			 (1 )Provisional data  (2 )Numbers in service are likely to be underestimated due to the late receipt of service information.  (3) Excludes teachers qualifying through employment based routes.  (4)The service position shown is at the first March following the year of qualification.  (5 )In service in Wales or Further and Independent sector service in England and Wales.   Source:  Database of Teacher Records

Teachers (Bristol)

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many full-time equivalent qualified teachers were employed within  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in Bristol local education authority in (i) 1996-97 and (ii) the most recent school year for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: The table shows the full-time equivalent number of regular qualified teachers who were employed in maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools in Bristol local authority in January 1997 and 2005, the latest information available. The table also shows figures for England for comparison.
	It is anticipated that local authority level information for January 2006 will be published in September.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent regular qualified teachers in maintained nursery and primary and secondary schools in Bristol local authority and England in January 1997 and 2005 
			   Nursery/primary  Secondary 
			   Bristol  England  Bristol  England 
			 1997 1,540 190,660 1,120 187,660 
			 2005 1,390 189,920 1,070 204,080 
			  Note:  Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.   Source:  Survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies, (618g)

Teachers (Bristol)

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of teaching posts were filled by supply, temporary and agency teachers in  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in Bristol local education authority in (i) 1996-97 and (ii) the most recent school year for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not available in the required format because the number of teaching posts in Bristol local authority is not collected centrally.
	The table provides the number of occasional teachers (on contracts of less than one month) who were employed in maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools in Bristol local authority and England in January 1997 and 2005, the latest information available. The full-time equivalent number of regular qualified teachers is also provided.
	It is anticipated that local authority level teacher numbers for January 2006 will be published in September.
	
		
			  Number of occasional teachers (on contracts of less than one month) and full-time equivalent regular qualified teachers in maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools in Bristol local authority and England in January 1997 and 2005 
			   Nursery/primary  Secondary 
			   Occasional teachers( 1)  FTE regular qualified teachers( 2)  Occasional teachers( 1)  FTE regular qualified teachers( 2) 
			   Bristol  England  Bristol  England  Bristol  England  Bristol  England 
			 1997 110 8,310 1,540 190,660 60 4,390 1,120 187,660 
			 2005 90 8,570 1,390 189,920 40 5,700 1,070 204,080 
			 (1) 2005 figures include occasional teachers without qualified teacher status (QTS). (2) Excludes occasional teachers.  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.   Source:  Survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies, (618g)

University for Industry

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much has been spent on the University for Industry in each year since it opened; how many people graduated in each year; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: Figures for 2001-02 onwards are:
	
		
			million 
			 2001-02 153.7 
			 2002-03 164.9 
			 2003-04 239.6 
			 2004-05 181.9 
			 2005-06 (1)209.4 
			 2006-07 (2)176.3 
			 (1) Estimated outturn  (2) Planned 
		
	
	Full details of UFI funding are available only from 2001-02 onwards. Prior to 2001-02 funding was made available through the FEFC, for which we do not hold information. UFI (initially called the University for Industry), the organisation responsible for learndirect, has successfully pushed the boundaries of learning methods, by making innovative use of technology to make learning more flexible. It is the largest Government supported e-learning initiative in the world, and provides high quality learning for the post-16 learning and skills sector. It particularly reaches those with few or no skills and qualifications who are unlikely to participate in more traditional forms of learning. It is not an awarding body and does not have the status of a university.
	Since 1999, more than 2 million people have improved their skills either at a learndirect centre, from work, or from their home computer. Since April 2003, over 120,000 people have achieved their first skills for life test pass in literacy or numeracy through learndirect. UFI is now delivering over one fifth of the post-19 sector's skills for life test passes annually. Almost 200,000 small and medium sized employers have also used learndirect services. The learndirect advice service has delivered more than 33 million information and advice sessions on the telephone and online.

DEFENCE

Access to Work Scheme

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many disabled staff in his Department received support through the Access to Work scheme  (a) in each of the last five years and  (b) in 2006-07.

Tom Watson: The Ministry of Defence makes full use of the Access to Work scheme in assessing the needs of its disabled staff for reasonable adjustments in the workplace. However, it does not collect the numbers of disabled staff receiving adaptations and equipment paid for by Access to Work, and this information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Afghanistan

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress International Security Assistance Force forces have made in implementing the NATO counter-narcotics operation in Afghanistan agreed in November 2005.

Adam Ingram: Under the terms of NATO's operational plan for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), ISAF forces can provide, within means and capabilities, training and operational support to Afghan counter-narcotics forces. But they are not there to take direct action against the drugs trade or to eradicate opium poppy in the fields; that is a job for the Afghan Government.

Airborne Stand Off Radar

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many aircraft equipped with Airborne Stand Off Radar are in service.

Adam Ingram: There are currently no aircraft equipped with Airborne Stand Off Radar in service.

Aircraft Carriers

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on progress regarding the Future Aircraft Carrier programme.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made by my right hon. Friend the then Secretary of State for Defence on 14 December 2005, and to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr. Bone) on 6 February 2006,  Official Report, column 824W, which outlined the major steps taken in our plans for the future aircraft carriers including details of our co-operation with France.
	My noble Friend Lord Drayson, the Minister for Defence Procurement, subsequently announced that on 13 April the Aircraft Carrier Alliance signed a formal Alliance Agreement and individual works contracts totalling more than 140 million to continue to refine and mature all aspects of the ship design and its equipment, including mission systems. These contracts and the Alliance Agreement cover the key demonstration phase of the work and involve shipyards and industry in maturing the design to the point at which we can commit to manufacture. When we are satisfied that all this work is sufficiently mature, the main investment decision can be taken and orders placed. At this point, we will also set the in-service dates.

Approved Projects

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many approved projects fell into each approval category in 2005-06; and what the aggregated approved expenditure was for each category.

Adam Ingram: The following table details the number of approved projects that fell into categories A to C in 2005-06 and the aggregated approved expenditure for each category.
	
		
			  Category  Number of projects  Aggregated approved expenditure ( million) 
			 A 43 20,247 
			 B 29 954 
			 C 32 456 
		
	
	Records on category D approvals are not held centrally and the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Armed Forces Pensions

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written statement of 11 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 60-61WS, on armed forces invaliding pensions, what his Department's policy is on the payment of interest on underpaid  (a) pay and  (b) pensions.

Tom Watson: Any claims for compensation as a result of incorrect payments are considered in accordance with Government accounting procedures. The general principle adopted is that the individual may be recompensed where it can be shown that a financial loss has occurred through maladministration.
	Those affected by the pension error that I announced on 11 July 2006 , Official Report, columns 60-61 WS, will receive, in addition to any back payments due, interest in accordance with Government accounting rules. The Department is currently considering whether any additional recompense should be paid when the errors are corrected.

Armed Forces Pensions

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written statement of 11 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 60-61WS, on armed forces invaliding pensions, what research his Department has undertaken into the proposed merger of the Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency and the Veterans Agency; what his assessment is of the  (a) advantages and  (b) disadvantages of such a merger; and what assessment he has made of the likely effect of such a merger on Joint Personnel Administration.

Tom Watson: I refer the hon. Member to the ministerial statement I made on 17 July 2006.

Armed Forces Pensions

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written statement of 11 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 60-1WS, on armed forces invaliding pensions, when the error was found; what assessment he has made of the likelihood of further errors being uncovered; and what his estimate is of the financial liability arising from the errors.

Tom Watson: The error was found while making payments to rectify pension errors under Projects Haven and Scribe during the period 2003-06. As these projects moved towards a conclusion, specialist resources were freed up to scope this new problem. In view of the work that has been done to review pension files, the likelihood of further errors being uncovered is low, and robust arrangements have been put in place to prevent similar problems occurring in the future.
	The total pension arrears payable are estimated to be some 8.8 million plus interest, and I shall be considering as a matter of priority whether additional recompense is appropriate.

Armed Forces Pensions

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his assessment is of the impact of increased life expectancy on the integrity and affordability of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: New entrants to the armed forces on or after 6 April 2005 have joined the new Armed Forces Pension Scheme 2005. The impact of recent improvements in life expectancy was fully taken into account in developing the benefit structure of this scheme, including by setting a preserved pension age at 65. There have also been changes to the benefit structure of the old pension scheme, the Armed Forces Pension Scheme 1975, to ensure its long term affordability. The age at which a preserved pension is paid was delayed from 60 to 65 for all service, from 6 April 2006. Some of these savings were reinvested in the scheme in the form of an increase in the death in service lump sum to three times pay. The impact of changing life expectancy and other relevant factors is monitored by the Government Actuary's Department, the actuary for the schemes, through regular assessments of the employer's contribution for the two AFPS schemes.

Army Continuous Attitude Survey

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1708W, on the Army Continuous Attitude Survey, why the categories included in question 66 of the seventh Serving Personnel survey 'I didn't believe anything would be done if I did complain' and 'I thought that it would cause problems in my workplace' have been omitted from the ninth Serving Personnel survey.

Tom Watson: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 6 July 2006,  Official Report, column 1352W. Whereas question 66 in the seventh Serving Personnel survey provided a menu of possible responses, question 39c in the ninth Serving Personnel survey is an open-ended question, and does not offer a menu of responses. This approach is designed to provide a richer source of data by enabling respondents to answer the question in their own terms. The breakdown of negative comments in my answer of 6 July reflects an analysis of actual responses to question 39c conducted by occupational scientists. A sample of respondents' comments was extracted and similar types were summarised into a category. Categories were arranged under appropriate headings to provide a coding framework, which was validated using a further sample of comments. Respondents typically made more than one comment and all comments were read and assigned the relevant code(s) to calculate their frequencies.

Army Personnel (Basing)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Army personnel are based in each Government office region of England.

Tom Watson: The strength of United Kingdom regular forces posted in the UK by Government office region is available in tri-service publication (TSP) 10UK Regular Forces Distribution Across UK.
	TSP 10 is published quarterly; the most recent publication shows the numbers of service personnel at 1 April 2006.
	Copies of TSP 10 are held in the House of Commons Library and are also available at www.dasa.mod.uk.

Bearskins

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 12 June 2006,  Official Report, column 996W, on bearskins, what research is taking place into producing alternatives to real bearskin; who is undertaking the research; and what the time scale is for completion of research contracts.

Adam Ingram: At present the Ministry of Defence does not have a research contract for producing an alternative to real bearskin. A number of contracts have previously been let with commercial companies but none of these produced a useable product. A faux-fur sample has, however, been submitted by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and this is currently being assessed for its suitability.

Chinook ZD 576 (Mull of Kintyre Crash)

James Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the reports into  (a) incident signal 21/4/94 from No. 1 ECU (Engine) sent to Fleetlands for investigation,  (b) incident signal 17/5/94 from No. 1 ECU (Engine) sent to third/fourth line for investigation and  (c) incident signal 26/5/04 of the engine change units in the engines of Chinook ZD 576 in the weeks prior to the crash on the Mull of Kintyre on 2 June 1994; and whether these reports are consistent with the problems recorded in the aircraft log.

Adam Ingram: Officials need to research archived records and I will therefore write to the right hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Colombia

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 3 July 2006,  Official Report, column 703W, on Colombia, what types of explosive device training are being provided with UK military assistance.

Adam Ingram: The type of training provided includes de-mining training and training in improvised explosive device disposal.

Colombia

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 10 May 2006,  Official Report, column 298W, on Colombia, for what reasons listing the financial value of bespoke counter- narcotics training provided to Colombia would damage  (a) the safety of individuals,  (b) the prevention and detection of crime and  (c) international relations; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The bespoke counter-narcotics training provided by the Ministry of Defence is in support of HMG's wider engagement with Colombia on counter- narcotics matters.
	Providing further information on this issue could endanger the safety of individuals and reduce the effectiveness of the Colombian law enforcement mission by raising the public profile of this counter- narcotics work, including in Colombia. It would also be contrary to the wishes of the Colombian authorities.

Combat Troops

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many combat troops have been provided by each contributing nation to  (a) Operation Enduring Freedom and  (b) the International Security Assistance Force.

Des Browne: The Commanding Officer of the International Security Assistance Force has confirmed that he has the forces required to do the job asked of him. The precise composition of the force package provided by nations in support of either Operation Enduring Freedom or the International Security Assistance Force is a matter for the nations concerned.

Comprehensive Spending Review

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether a new strategic defence review will be conducted before the forthcoming comprehensive spending review.

Des Browne: No.

CRV 7 Multi-Purpose Sub Munition

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  whether the UK attack helicopters in Afghanistan are equipped with the CRV 7 Multi-Purpose Sub Munition;
	(2)  what use has been made of the CRV 7 Multi-Purpose Sub Munition in combat in each of the last 10 years.

Adam Ingram: The Multi-Purpose Sub Munition variant of the CRV 7 system is one of the weapons systems available for use by Apache Mk 1 Attack Helicopters in Afghanistan.
	As at 10 July 2006 no use has been made of the CRV 7 Multi Purpose Sub Munition in combat by any element of UK armed forces since it came into service in 2003.

Defence Food Supply Contract

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his written statement of 27 June 2006,  Official Report, column 5WS, on the Defence Food Supply Contract, what percentage of the meat supplied to British troops will be from British farms.

Adam Ingram: The new food supply contact will commence on 1 October 2006. Transitional arrangements are still being discussed with the contractor, Purple Foodservice Solutions. At this stage we are therefore unable to provide the information requested.

Defence Information Structure

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many additional payments have been agreed with the contractors for the Defence Information Infrastructure project since the contract was issued; to whom such payments  (a) have been made and  (b) are to be made; how much has been paid and on what dates; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: All payments in respect of Increment 1 of the DII contract are and will be made to EDS as the prime contractor for DII. Payments are made through the service delivery charges of the contract. These charges are commercially sensitive and cannot be disclosed.
	A range of changes to the Defence Information Infrastructure programme have taken place since contract award in March 2005. A level of change was always expected and is allowed for under the provisions of the contract. In terms of the overall value of Increment 1 of the DII contract the value of these changes is not significant.

Defence Information Structure

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the original  (a) estimated costs and  (b) in service delivery date were for the Defence Information Infrastructure project; and what the current situation is in each case.

Adam Ingram: Increment 1 of the Defence Information Infrastructure contract was awarded to the ATLAS Consortium, led by EDS, in March 2005 with an estimated value of 2.3 billion. This estimated value remains extant. There is no in service delivery date as such within the contract. The contracted New Services Commencement Date was originally March 2006. This date was subsequently revised to May 2006 and was met successfully.

Helicopters

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many military helicopter flights there were in the airspace above the constituency of Hammersmith and Fulham in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: This information is not centrally held. Although individual units hold details of all flight paths undertaken by their own helicopters this information is not centrally collated and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Helicopters

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) actual and  (b) required number of helicopter crew personnel are for each regiment of the Army Air Corps.

Adam Ingram: The number of actual and required helicopter crew personnel for each regular regiment of the Army Air Corps (AAC) is as follows:
	
		
			  Regiment  Helicopter Crew Established (Required)  Helicopter Crew Held (Actual) 
			 1 Regt AAC 60 54 
			 3 Regt AAC 85 57 
			 4 Regt AAC 85 63 
			 5 Regt AAC 93 64 
			 9 Regt AAC 85 69 
		
	
	These figures include qualified helicopter instructors and regimental headquarters personnel, whose primary role is not as helicopter crew. The figures do not include aviation crewmen, such as air door gunners and winch operators, because this is not a long-term Career Employment Group. The established figure for 5 Regiment AAC will reduce to 31 by 1 April 2007, as part of the planned reductions in Northern Ireland. The deficits shown in the table in 3,4 and 9 Regiments AAC are mainly due to the re-roling of these regiments to Apache helicopters. As a consequence of re-roling, some aircrew are posted away for retraining.

Helicopters

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the availability of spare engines for each type of helicopter in service with the armed forces.

Adam Ingram: The number of spare engines held by the Ministry of Defence differs for each helicopter type and is determined by a number of factors including the size of the fleet, the scheduled training flying hour requirement, industrial considerations (e.g. the lead time to procure an engine) and operational requirements. At any one time, some engines may be undergoing repair and maintenance. We currently have sufficient spare engines to meet operational and training requirements for each helicopter type.

HMS Argyll

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence why HMS Argyll is not to be modified to operate the Merlin helicopter; and what the intended out-of-service date is for this vessel.

Adam Ingram: The operational requirement is for 12 Type 23 frigates to be modified to operate the Merlin helicopter. The decision on which ships are to be modified is determined by the fitting opportunities within the frigate upkeep programme. HMS Argyll will not be modified as the requirement will be met by other frigates with earlier fitting opportunities within the upkeep programme. Should the programme change, the situation will be reviewed. On current plans HMS Argyll is due to be withdrawn from service in 2019.

Meal Budgets

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the budget is per person per day for meals for members of the armed forces serving in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan.

Adam Ingram: The budget per person per day for meals for members of the armed forces serving in both Iraq and Afghanistan is currently 3.11 per day (July 2006 rate). It is intended to provide 2,900 calories per day, based on three meals per day. This Daily Messing Rate is based on a basket of food items, and is calculated on a monthly basis by applying prices obtained from the main Ministry of Defence Food Supply Contractor to the Home Ration Scale.

Meat Procurement

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of his Department's procurement policy on  (a) beef and  (b) lamb for members of the British armed forces serving on the Falkland Islands.

Adam Ingram: The procurement of meat in the Falkland Islands is consistent with the Ministry of Defence's wider procurement policy. In accordance with this policy, contractors are encouraged to purchase British produce whenever it is competitive and consistent with meeting quality standards. The MOD is, however, bound by European legislation, and is required to seek value for money in the Single European Market. The MOD's Food Supply Contractor sources all meat procured for use by the UK armed forces.

Merchant Naval Ships

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he takes to ensure that wrecks of merchant naval ships lost during hostilities are protected.

Tom Watson: Issues relating to merchant vessels are in the first instance the responsibility of the Department for Transport.
	The Ministry of Defence administers the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, which allows it to protect from unauthorised interference the remains of aircraft and ships lost while in military service.
	Whether an individual merchant vessel is eligible for designation under the Act depends on whether it can be said to have been in military service. This will be a case-by-case determination, depending on the circumstances of the individual vessel's loss.

Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability  Programme

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) out-of-service date is for each Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel due for decommissioning by 2025 and  (b) scheduled in-service date is for each planned new vessel in the Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability programme.

Adam Ingram: On current plans the RFA out-of- service dates are as follows:
	
		
			   Date 
			 RFA Sir Tristram 2006 
			 RFA Sir Galahad 2006 
			 RFA Grey Rover 2006 
			 RFA Gold Rover 2009 
			 RFA Brambleleaf 2009 
			 RFA Orangeleaf 2009 
			 RFA Black Rover 2010 
			 RFA Oakleaf 2010 
			 RFA Bayleaf 2010 
			 RFA Sir Bedivere 2011 
			 RFA Fort Rosalie 2013 
			 RFA Fort Austin 2014 
			 RFA Diligence 2014 
			 RFA Fort George 2019 
			 RFA Fort Victoria 2019 
			 RFA Argus 2020 
		
	
	As with all projects, the in-service dates for the vessels in the Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability programme will only be set following the main investment decision. This decision has not yet been taken.

Military Equipment Exports

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to supply the Government of Colombia with  (a) military equipment and  (b) other support in each of the next three years.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence does not supply the Colombian armed forces with military equipment. We currently have no plans to alter this policy. I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's reply on 3 July 2006,  Official Report, column 703W.

Military Vehicles

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to purchase mine-protected RG-31 vehicles, or variants thereof, for the Army.

Adam Ingram: As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence announced on 26 June we are conducting a review of the options for protected patrol vehicles to determine what can be done as soon as possible and in the longer term.

Military Vehicles

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the wheelbase dimensions are of  (a) the Snatch Land Rover,  (b) the RG-31 and  (c) variants of the RG-31; and if he will make a statement.

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the dimensions of the  (a) Snatch armoured Land Rover,  (b) RG-31M and  (c) Tempest Truck, the Mine-Protected Vehicle are; what is the time for each vehicle to accelerate from stationary to normal cruising speed; what their maximum speeds are; and what their turning circles are.

Adam Ingram: The information requested on Snatch, the Mine Protected Vehicle and RG-31 is:
	
		
			  Vehicle  Length  Width  Height  Max Speed  Acceleration  Turning Circle( 1) 
			 Snatch 4.80m 1.69m 2.37m lOOkm/h(2) Not measured 12.8m 
			 MPV(3) 6.28m 2.75m 3.04m 80km/h Not measured 17m 
			 RG-31(4) 6.40m 2.47m 2.84m 100km/h Not stated 16m 
			 (1) Kerb to kerb distance.  (2) For Snatch 2; Snatch 1 and 1.5 are slightly less. Since high speed is not a requirement for Snatch, its maximum speed has not been tested precisely.  (3) The vehicle chosen to replace Mamba as the Mine Protected Vehicle (MPV) was initially called Tempest but this name is no longer used and the in service vehicle, based on the Cougar vehicle produced by Force Protection Inc, is known simply as MPV.  (4) RG-31 is not in service with the UK armed forces, but this data was obtained from BAES during the ongoing review of our patrol vehicle capability.

Military Vehicles

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost per track mile excluding crew costs is of operating  (a) a Warrior MICV and  (b) a RG-31M in Iraqi conditions.

Adam Ingram: The full capitation cost for the Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicle (all variants) based on peacetime usage is calculated for financial year 2006-07 as 154.04 per kilometre. Specific operational track mile data is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The Ministry of Defence does not own any RG-31M vehicles.

Phoenix UAV

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much the Phoenix unmanned aerial vehicle has cost since the programme's inception.

Adam Ingram: The Phoenix unmanned aerial vehicle system has cost approximately 345 million since inception.

Premature Voluntary Releases

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many premature voluntary release exits there were from the regular  (a) infantry,  (b) Royal Artillery,  (c) Royal Engineers,  (d) Royal Corps of Signals,  (e) Royal Armoured Corps,  (d) Household Cavalry and  (e) Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers in each of the last five years.

Tom Watson: Between 1 April 2001 and 31 March 2006, there were 18, 660 voluntary outflow release exits in these arms/services.
	
		
			  Voluntary outflow exits( 1)  (officers( 2)  and soldiers: 2001-02 to 2005-06 
			  Arm/service  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  Total 
			 The Household Cavalry/Royal Armoured Corps 330 320 330 310 350 1,650 
			 Royal Regiment of Artillery 410 390 430 450 420 2,100 
			 Royal Corps of Engineers 560 500 530 660 660 2,910 
			 Royal Corps of Signals 630 450 400 470 420 2,380 
			 The Infantry 1,600 1,460 1,430 1,460 1,530 7,480 
			 Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers 420 370 440 480 440 2,140 
			 Total 3,950 3,500 3,550 3,830 3,830 18,660 
			 (1) The term premature voluntary release (PVR) has been changed to voluntary outflow (VO) although the methodology for producing this information remains the same. voluntary outflow is defined as all exits from trained personnel which are generated by the individual before their time expiry.  (2) Figures for officers in the general staff (officers with the rank of colonel or above) are excluded.   Note:  Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Due to rounding the totals may not equal the sum of the pans.

Private Land (Military Use)

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many private sites are used for military exercises in Herefordshire; and whether rent is paid for use of such sites.

Tom Watson: In financial year 2005-06, 161 sites were used for military training on private land in Herefordshire. So far this financial year, 92 sites have been used of which nine were for adventure training. The military training undertaken on private land in Herefordshire is primarily, though not exclusively, operational in nature rather than being designated exercises.
	No rent is paid for military training on private land in Herefordshire, apart from camp site fees which are sometimes paid for adventure training exercises. Fees have been incurred for five of the adventure training exercises that have taken place this year.
	The owners' permission is sought in advance of any training on private land.

Raptor Reconnaissance Pods

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Raptor reconnaissance pods are fitted to Tornado aircraft.

Adam Ingram: There are currently four Reconnaissance Airborne Pod Tornado pods undergoing acceptance flight trials for the Tornado GR4/4A. A further four pods are undergoing maintenance activity with the equipment manufacturer, Goodrich Company.

Recruitment

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people joined the Army from each Government office region of England in 2005.

Tom Watson: Estimated soldier enlistments for 2005 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Government office region  Enlistments 
			 North East 440 
			 North West 1,870 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 1,160 
			 East Midlands 730 
			 West Midlands 990 
			 East of England 700 
			 London 590 
			 South East 800 
			 South West 860 
			  Notes:  1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. When rounding to the nearest 10, numbers ending in five have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.  2. Figures are based on the location of armed forces career office to which the applicant applied rather than the residence of the applicant. Due to the nature of Army officer recruitment procedures, it is not possible to provide an estimate for the number of Army officers recruited from each Government office region.

Reserve Forces

Julian Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the proportion of members of reserve forces who belong to ethnic minorities.

Tom Watson: holding answer 14 July 2006
	The proportion of ethnic minorities(1) in the volunteer reserve forces for 1 April 2006(2):
	
		
			   Percentage 
			 Tri-Service 4.5 
			 Royal Navy Reserve 2.8 
			 Royal Marines Reserve 2.7 
			 Territorial Army(3) 4.7 
			 Royal Auxiliary Air Force 3.1 
			 (1) Ethnic minority proportions are calculated as a percentage of those personnel for whom we hold a record of ethnic origin, ie excluding those of unspecified ethnic origin.  (2) Due to the introduction of a new Personnel Administration System for RAF, all RAF data are for 1 March 2006.  (3) Figures include Mobilised TA personnel and University Officer Training Corps but exclude Non Regular Permanent Staff and Full Time Reserve Service personnel.

Royal Navy

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many serving naval  (a) engineering mechanics,  (b) submariner nuclear watchkeepers and  (c) medical assistants there are; and what the requirement is for each category.

Tom Watson: The requirement and numbers serving for engineering ratings, submariner nuclear watchkeepers and medical assistants, as at 1 June 2006, are:
	
		
			  Specialisation  Trained requirement  Trained strength  Untrained strength 
			 Engineering ratings 10,020 9,670 1,580 
			 Submariner nuclear watchkeepers 850 730 0 
			 Medical assistants 680 640 70 
			  Notes:  1. The Navy is currently restructuring the engineering branches, moving from the artificer/mechanic career streams to a single technician stream. This process is in mid transition, so no meaningful figures can be obtained for mechanics alone. The figures provided are for all ratings engineers (mechanics, technicians and artificers).  2. The figures for submariner nuclear watchkeepers are for the petty officer. Chief petty officer and warrant officer 2 ranks of the marine engineer (submariner) specialisations.  3. The figures for medical assistants are for the medical assistant (general service), medical assistant (submariner) and medical assistant (commando) specialisations.  4. The requirement relates to posts that need to be filled by trained personnel. To enable valid comparisons the numbers serving figures have been split into trained and untrained.  5. All figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Saudi Arabia

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the value was of armaments purchased from the UK by the Government of Saudi Arabia in each year since 1997.

Adam Ingram: Statistics on the value of exports of military equipment have been published by country for each year since 1997 in the Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls. It is planned to publish the Annual Report for 2005 towards the end of this month.

Service Children (Education)

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of children in service children's education schools achieved three A-level passes each year since 1997.

Tom Watson: Of the students who sat three or more A-level examinations at service children's education schools since 1997, the following percentages achieved a pass mark graded at A-E in three or more subjects:
	
		
			   Percentage 
			 1997 72 
			 1998 84 
			 1999 78 
			 2000 94 
			 2001 88 
			 2002 98 
			 2003 89 
			 2004 91 
			 2005 94 
		
	
	These figures relate to A-level examinations only and not A-level equivalent examinations which are becoming an increasingly common option for students.

Spectrum Utilisation

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list mobile and fixed linked bands that  (a) were and  (b) were not subject to spectrum pricing in each financial year from 2004-05.

Adam Ingram: The bands subject to spectrum pricing in 2004-05 and 2005-06 and the basis of pricing were as follows:
	
		
			  2004-05  2005-06 
			  Band Min. (MHz)  Band Max. (MHz)  Pricing Basis  Band Min. (MHz)  Band Max. (MHz)  Pricing Basis 
			 70 70.5 Mobile 70 70.5 Mobile 
			 72.8 74.8 Mobile 72.8 74.8 Mobile 
			 75.2 76.7 Mobile 75.2 76.7 Mobile 
			 78 80 Mobile 78 80 Mobile 
			 84 85 Mobile 83.5 85 Mobile 
			 137 138 Mobile 137 138 Mobile 
			 141.9 143 Mobile 141.9 143 Mobile 
			 149 149.9 Mobile 149 149.9 Mobile 
			 153.5 154 Mobile 153.5 154 Mobile 
			 401 406 Mobile 401 406 Mobile 
			 406.1 410 Mobile 406.1 410 Mobile 
			 410 430 Mobile 410 430 Mobile 
			 430 450 Mobile 430 450 Mobile 
			 870 872 Mobile 870 872 Mobile 
			 876 880 Mobile 876 880 Mobile 
			 915 917 Mobile 915 917 Mobile 
			 921 925 Mobile 921 925 Mobile 
			 1375 1400 Fixed 1375 1400 Fixed 
			 1427 1452 Fixed 1427 1452 Fixed 
			 2025 2070 Fixed 2025 2070 Fixed 
			 2200 2245 Fixed 2200 2245 Fixed 
			 2290 2300 Fixed Released to Ofcom 
			 2310 2390 Fixed 2310 2390 Mobile 
			 2390 2450 Fixed 2390 2450 Mobile 
			 3400 3600 Fixed 3400 3600 Fixed 
			 4400 5000 Fixed 4400 5000 Fixed 
			 5650 5850 Fixed 5650 5850 Fixed 
			 7900 7975 Fixed 7900 7975 Fixed 
			 8025 8400 Fixed 8025 8400 Fixed 
			 8500 8750 Fixed 8500 8750 Fixed 
			 8850 9000 Fixed 8850 9000 Fixed 
			 9500 10125 Fixed 9500 10125 Fixed 
			 10125 10225 Fixed 10125 10225 Fixed 
			 10225 10475 Fixed 10225 10475 Fixed 
			 10475 10500 Fixed 10475 10500 Fixed 
			 13400 14000 Fixed 13400 14000 Fixed 
			 14620 15230 Fixed 14620 15230 Fixed 
		
	
	Pricing for 2006-07 is yet to be concluded with Ofcom but it is expected that the priced bands and the basis (either fixed or mobile) for pricing will remain as in 2005-06.
	The bands used by the MOD that are not subject to pricing other than the above are those available for military use that are listed in the United Kingdom Frequency Allocation Table (2004 Issue No. 13) that is issued by the National Frequency Planning Group on behalf of the Cabinet Official Committee on UK Spectrum Management.

Spectrum Utilisation

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what spectrum price was paid by his Department for the bands which it managed in each financial year from 2004-05; and what estimate he has made for each financial year from 2006-07 to 2009-10.

Adam Ingram: The payments made to Ofcom for spectrum in each of the last two financial years were:
	
		
			million 
			 2004-05 24 
			 2005-06 55 
		
	
	The change in cost was as a result of agreements reached following a review of spectrum pricing policy and procedures.
	A sum of 56 million has been allocated for spectrum expenditure in financial year 2006-07 but funding for subsequent years is still under discussion.

Type 23 Frigates (Sonar 2087)

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what future roles are planned for the five Type 23 frigates which are not to be fitted with Sonar 2087; and what the scheduled out-of-service date is for each of these ships.

Adam Ingram: HM Ships Montrose, Monmouth, Iron Duke, Lancaster and Argyll are not scheduled to receive Sonar 2087. These ships will be employed across the normal range of standing strategic, home and overseas commitments. These include Fleet Ready Escort duties around home waters, operational deployments to the Gulf and Arabian Sea, and standing tasks in the South Atlantic (APT(S)), Caribbean (APT(N)) and within NATO's Standing Maritime Group in the Mediterranean (SNMG2). They will also continue to contribute to the UK's Maritime Joint Rapid Reaction Force (JRRF) held at high readiness for contingent operations, and deploy on pre-planned activities as JRRF elements within a Task Group.
	On current plans the ships will be withdrawn from service in:
	
		
			   Date 
			 HMS Argyll 2019 
			 HMS Lancaster 2019 
			 HMS Iron Duke 2020 
			 HMS Monmouth 2021 
			 HMS Montrose 2021

Veterans

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on ensuring that employers are informed of the skills that veterans bring to the workplace.

Tom Watson: We have seen no need so far for specific discussions between my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Defence and for Work and Pensions on ensuring that employers are informed of the skills of Service leavers. High rates of employment for Service leavers are already achieved through the Department's Career Transition Partnership (CTP) as part of the resettlement process. Of those who wish to work and are eligible for the service, over 50 per cent. are in employment within one month of discharge, rising to about 95 per cent. six months post-discharge.
	The CTP commercial partner, Right Management Ltd. is a highly experienced outplacement company with a proven track record. It has a very effective marketing arm that carefully targets prospective employers who can offer quality jobs to Service leavers. Those employers who engage Service leavers are seldom disappointed and tend to seek more when vacancies arise.
	The cultivation of prospective employers is a continuing process, not only for Right Management but for all others involved in the resettlement of departing Service personnel. It is an area of further development under the new CTP contract, with particular emphasis on tying together, at both local and national level, jobs and resettlement training opportunities and exploiting those who have passed successfully through the CTP process to attain posts of influence in civilian employment.
	For the minority of early Service leavers who are not eligible for CTP services, a resettlement briefing is provided which signposts employment help available from Other Government Departments and ex-Service charities: contacts are arranged on their behalf as necessary, and these are followed up by the briefing officer. This group of early leavers is also assessed for vulnerability to social exclusion and extra help is given where this is identified as a concern. The effectiveness of these arrangements is being kept under review.

Veterans

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on meeting the health needs of veterans through the NHS.

Tom Watson: There have been no recent discussions on the subject between Secretaries of State. Since 1948, it has been the policy of successive Governments that health care for veterans should be provided by the NHS. Priority NHS treatment applies to veterans who are war pensioners for their accepted disorders. Officials in the Ministry of Defence and the four UK Health Departments work closely together, and they are at present developing delivery models to ensure high quality mental health services for veterans across the UK. My predecessors and I have been closely briefed on this and other work in the area of veterans' health. Should there be any issues following this work, or otherwise, I will discuss these with Ministers from the Department of Health and devolved Administrations through the Veterans Ministerial Task Force, as appropriate.

Veterans

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assistance is given to service personnel leaving the armed forces on finding appropriate housing; and what guidance has been given to housing authorities on assisting service personnel.

Tom Watson: Assistance is given through such schemes as Long Service Advance of Pay and advice offered by the Joint Services Housing Advice Office. Guidance is available to local authorities generally about the allocation of accommodation, the provision of homelessness assistance and the prevention of rough sleeping. This includes guidance on the circumstances when people leaving the armed forces would have a priority need for accommodation.

Veterans

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research his Department is undertaking into  (a) homelessness among veterans and  (b) veterans in prison; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: The Ex-Service Action Group, of which the Ministry of Defence and the Department for Communities and Local Government are members, has commissioned research to look into the effectiveness of interventions in preventing rough sleeping and homelessness among ex-Service personnel in London. The MOD will meet about 70 per cent. of the cost of this research from the Veterans Challenge Fund. The Department is not currently undertaking any research into veterans in prison but is leading a project with the Home Office, ex-Service charities and other voluntary sector organisations to assist ex-Service offenders in custody and on release, and their families, to reduce the risk of re-offending. In a related area, the Department has funded research on the possible merits of mentoring for vulnerable veterans which looked in particular at the needs of personnel discharged from the Military Corrective Training Centre. We are currently considering how best to take forward the results of this work.

Weapons Expenditure

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been spent on the development of the 40 mm Case Telescoped Ammunition weapon; and what assessment has been made of its  (a) effectiveness and  (b) in service cost.

Adam Ingram: The 40 mm Cased Telescope Ammunition weapon has been developed using private venture capital by CTA International. The Ministry of Defence is conducting a Technology Demonstrator Programme to assess its effectiveness when vehicle-mounted. No study has yet been made of the through-life costs of the system.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Advertising Campaigns

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what advertising campaigns his Department has run since July 2004; and what the  (a) date and  (b) cost was of each.

Anne McGuire: The Department runs a number of promotional campaigns aimed at increasing awareness of rights and responsibilities. The dates and costs are given as follows:
	
		
			  000 
			  Financial year  (a) Date of activity  (b) Annual cost 
			  Age Partnership Group   
			 2005-06 April 2005 to March 2006 19 
			 2006-07 April 2006 to May 2006 8 
			
			  Age Positive   
			 2004-05 April 2004 to March 2005 29 
			 2005-06 April 2005 to March 2006 68 
			
			  Council Tax Benefit   
			 2004-05 January 2005 674 
			  March 2005  
			 2005-06 January 2005 to February 2005 526 
			  March 2005  
			
			  Direct Payment   
			 2004-05 April 2004 8,379 
			  June 2004 to December 2004  
			  January 2005 -March 2005  
			
			  Disability Discrimination Act   
			 2004-05 March 2004 to September 2004 1,992 
			  January 2005 to March 2005  
			 2005-06 December 2005 to May 2006 888 
			
			  IB Reforms Pilot   
			 2004-05 April 2004 to May 2004 106 
			
			  Images of Disability   
			 2005-06 September 2005 2 
			
			  Lone Parent Leaflet Promotion Marketing   
			 2004-05 March 2005 216 
			
			  National Sector Campaign   
			 2005-06 July 2005 to September 2005 23 
			  October 2005 to December 2005  
			  January 2006 to March 2006  
			
			  National Vacancy Campaign   
			 2004-05 October 2004 to March 2005 390 
			
			  Pension Credit   
			 2004-05 April 2004 to July 2004 4,388 
			 2005-06 January 2005 to March 2005 362 
			
			  State Pension Deferral   
			 2004-05 November 2004 to July 2005 115 
			 2005-06 January 2006 to March 2006 392 
			 2006-07 April 2006 to May 2006 51 
			
			  State Second Pension   
			 2005-06 January 2006 to February 2006 675 
			
			  Targeting Benefit Fraud   
			 2004-05 June 2004 to July 2004 6,017 
			  October 2004 to November 2004  
			  December 2004 to February 2005  
			 2005-06 June 2005 to July 2005 7,042 
			  October 2005 to November 2005  
			  February 2005 to March 2005  
			
			  Winter Fuel Payments   
			 2004-05 June 2004 to March 2005 515 
			 2005-06 June 2005 to March 2006 918 
			  Notes: 1. The table does not include the following as the information is not held centrally and to obtain it would incur disproportionate cost: spend by non-departmental bodies for which the Department is responsible details of highly localised publicity activity by the Department's customer-facing businesses recruitment or procurement advertising.  2. The figures refer to media spend only, excluding production and other costs.  3. All figures have been rounded to the nearest 1,000. 4. All figures are exclusive of VAT.

Benefit Take-up

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of  (a) the number of people who were entitled to but not claiming (i) unemployment benefit and (ii) incapacity benefit in (A) rural and (B) non-rural areas in each year since 1997 and  (b) what proportion each figure represents of all those entitled to each benefit.

James Plaskitt: Estimates are not available below national level for income-based jobseeker's allowance. The national estimates are available in the DWP report entitled Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up. Copies of the latest publication, which describes patterns in take-up since 1997-98, together with past reports, are available in the Library.
	No estimates are available for incapacity benefit.

Computer Software

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department's policy is on the treatment of depreciation of computer software; and whether any extraordinary charges in respect of computer software assets have been made in the last three years.

Anne McGuire: The Department has a policy to depreciate software using a straight-line method, at rates calculated to write off the current replacement cost, less estimated residual value, of each asset in equal instalments over its expected useful life.
	Assets are depreciated from the month following acquisition or from when the asset is brought into use, if later.
	Software purchases are depreciated over a period of five years. Software licences and software development costs are depreciated over a period of five years or the life of the asset or licence period, if shorter.
	No extraordinary charges have been made in the last three years in respect of software.

Crisis Loans

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on crisis loans for people in  (a) Stroud and  (b) Gloucestershire in each of the last five years.

James Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
	
		
			  Crisis loans for area covered by Gloucestershire  Jobcentre Plus district 
			   Expenditure () 
			 2001-02 229,000 
			 2002-03 322,000 
			 2003-04 332,000 
			 2004-05 273,000 
			 2005-06 279,000 
			  Notes:  1. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency or county, but only by Jobcentre Plus district. 2. From April 2002, Stroud parliamentary constituency and the county of Gloucestershire were in Gloucestershire Jobcentre Plus district, previously known as Gloucestershire Social Fund district. This district merged with another district in April 2005. The figure for 2005-06 in the table is for the area covered by the former Gloucestershire Jobcentre Plus district.  3. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 1,000.   Source:  DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.

Crisis Loans

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on crisis loans for people in Coventry, South in each of the last five years.

James Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
	
		
			  Crisis loans for area covered by Coventry and Warwickshire Jobcentre Plus district 
			   Expenditure () 
			 2001-02 762,000 
			 2002-03 765,000 
			 2003-04 907,000 
			 2004-05 915,000 
			 2005-06 1,100,000 
			  Notes:  1. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency but only by Jobcentre Plus district.  2. The parliamentary constituency of Coventry South is in the Jobcentre Plus district of Coventry and Warwickshire. This district was formed in September 2002 by merging the Social Fund district of Coventry and the Social Fund district of Warwickshire. The expenditure for these two districts has been combined in the table. 3. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 1,000.   Source:  DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.

Departmental Staff (Sickness Absence)

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 14 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1296W, on departmental staff, how many staff in his Department have had more than two periods of sickness of less than five days in two or more of the years for which he has provided figures.

Anne McGuire: Full information on how many staff in the DWP have had more than two periods of sickness of less than five days or more in two or more years is not collated and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Disability Living Allowance

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Oxfordshire include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the  (a) highest rate,  (b) middle rate and  (c) lowest rate.

Jim Murphy: The administration of disability living allowance is a matter for the chief executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Terry Moran, dated 17 July 2006:
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households in Oxfordshire include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the  (a) highest rate  (b) middle rate and  (c) lowest rate.
	The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.
	The information available is in the following tables:
	
		
			  Recipients of disability living allowance with learning difficulties by rate of care award as at November 2005 in Oxfordshire parliamentary constituencies 
			   Care component 
			   Total with care component  Highest rate  Middle rate  Lowest rate 
			 County of Oxford total 1,940 540 340 1,070 
			 Banbury 370 90 70 220 
			 Henley 200 60 30 110 
			 Oxford East 430 120 70 240 
			 Oxford West and Abingdon 290 70 50 170 
			 Wantage 320 100 60 170 
			 Witney 330 100 60 160 
			  Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 4. Figures are based on the care component condition only.  Source:  DWP, WPLS 100 per cent. data. 
		
	
	
		
			  Recipients of Disability Living Allowance with learning difficulties by rate of care award as at November 2005 in Oxfordshire local authorities 
			   Care component 
			   Total with care component  Highest rate  Middle rate  Lowest rate 
			 Oxfordshire total 1,940 530 340 1,070 
			 Cherwell 440 110 70 250 
			 Oxford 480 120 80 280 
			 South Oxfordshire 330 100 60 160 
			 Vale of White Horse 370 90 70 220 
			 West Oxfordshire 320 100 60 160 
			  Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 4. Figures are based on the care component condition only.  Source:  DWP, WPLS 100 per cent. data. 
		
	
	I hope this is helpful.

Disability Living Allowance

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Somerset include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the  (a) highest,  (b) middle and  (c) lowest rate.

Jim Murphy: The administration of disability living allowance is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Terry Moran, dated 17 July 2006:
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households in Somerset include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the (a) highest (b) middle and (c) lowest rate.
	The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.
	The information available is in the following table:
	
		
			  Recipients of disability living allowance with learning difficulties by rate of care award as at November 2005 in Somerset local authorities. 
			   Care Component 
			   Total with care component  Higher rate  Middle rate  Lowest rate 
			 Somerset total 2,010 520 430 1,060 
			 Mendip 430 100 110 220 
			 Sedgemoor 430 110 90 230 
			 South Somerset 560 160 120 280 
			 Taunton Deane 440 130 90 220 
			 West Somerset 160 30 30 110 
			  Notes:  1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10.  2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  3. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.  4. Figures are based on the care component condition only.  5. Information is only available for the Somerset local authorities.   Source:  DWP, WPLS 100 per cent. data. 
		
	
	I hope this is helpful.

Financial Assistance Scheme

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what additional resources his Department estimates would be needed to extend the provision of the financial assistance scheme to those aged  (a) between 59 and 62,  (b) between 55 and 59 and  (c) under 55; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the additional resources needed to extend the provision of the financial assistance scheme to those who otherwise fulfil the eligibility criteria but who are aged  (a) below 55 and  (b) between 55 and 59; and if he will make a statement.

James Purnell: Eligibility for the financial assistance scheme is based on the number of years to normal scheme retirement age when the financial assistance scheme was introduced in May 2004. People within three years of their normal scheme retirement age qualify for payments when they reach 65. Not all schemes have a retirement age of 65. Estimates of the cost of extending the financial assistance scheme to individuals of specific ages are not available.

Health and Safety

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Health and Safety Executive inspectors have been employed in the field operations division in each of the last five years, broken down by region.

Anne McGuire: The number of Health and Safety inspectors employed in the Field Operations Directorate for each of the last five years broken down by region are listed in the following table.
	On 1 April 2005, management responsibility for 72 inspectors transferred from field operations directorate to policy group but their role remains essentially unchanged.
	
		
			  As at 1 April each year  Scotland  North West  Yorkshire and North East  Midlands  Wales South West  East South East  London  Total 
			 2002 120 119 129 163 105 183 83 902 
			 2003 110 98 108 155 144 195 86 896 
			 2004 103 96 133 141 112 164 77 826 
			 2005 87 86 111 133 107 168 73 765 
			 2006 89 91 113 121 112 159 70 755 
		
	
	From October 2004, we have also had a front-line force of health and safety awareness officers, numbering 97 in 2006. The proportion of front-line staff remains at 21 per cent. of HSE staff in 2006 as it was in 2005, so essentially front-line delivery remains the same.
	Over the last four years, the FOD has consistently increased the proportion of time it spends on front-line activitiesstanding at 61 per cent. for the 2005-06 work year.

Health and Safety

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what  (a) work on contract for overseas Governments and public bodies,  (b) work on contract for overseas commercial interests and  (c) collaborative work with other agencies abroad is carried out by (i) the Health and Safety Executive and (ii) the Health and Safety Laboratory; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The Health and Safety Executive carries out no work under contract for overseas Governments, public bodies and commercial interests. It does, however, carry out a considerable amount of collaborative work with other agencies abroad. The principal items of such work and the agencies, etc., with whom they are done are listed in table A.
	The work currently being carried out by Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) on contract for overseas Governments and public bodies and for overseas commercial interests is set out in tables B1, B2 and B3.
	In addition, HSL operates the Great Britain Explosives Notified Body, which offers a service to industry throughout the world to certify explosives falling within the scope of the European Directive 93/15/EEC and the Placing on the Market and Supervision of Transfers of Explosives Regulations (POMSTER). Explosives that meet the requirements of the directive and POMSTER may be marked with the CE mark. HSL currently has 80 overseas commercial applicants for certification.
	HSL collaborates with a large number of overseas laboratories, principally in the area of quality control. In addition, HSL has formal collaboration agreements in place with the following overseas organisations: Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency; Canadian Explosives Research Laboratory; Institut de Recherche Robert Sauve en Sante et en Securite du Traveil (IRSST) Canada; and the National Institute for Occupational Health of the National Health and Laboratory Service, South Africa. Together with 11 other laboratories in member states of the EU, HSL is a signatory to the Framework Agreement on the Foundation of the Partnership for European Research in Occupational Safety and Health (PEROSH); and is also a World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre.
	In addition to these formal collaborative arrangements, Both HSE and HSL staff also regularly exchange information with the counterparts, experts and scientists throughout the world, both in the public and private sectors.
	
		
			  Table A: Collaborative work carried out by HSE with Overseas Agencies 
			  Organisation  Area of work 
			 World Health Organisation Health effects of exposure to static/time varying electro magnetic fields; occupational safety and health statistics. 
			 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Nuclear Energy Agency Nuclear energy safety. 
			 International Labour Organisation Developing and maintaining occupational safety and health standards. 
			 International Social Security Association: International Agriculture Section Occupational safety and health in agriculture. 
			 International Organisation for Standardization International health and safety standards. 
			 International Atomic Energy Agency Nuclear energy safety. 
			 United Nations Group of Experts on the Globally Harmonised System for the Classification and Labelling of Chemicals Classification and labelling of chemicals. 
			 International Conference of Chief Inspectors of Explosives Exchange of information and good practice on the regulation of explosives. 
			 International Association of Labour Inspectorates Exchange of information and good practice on occupational safety and health enforcement. 
			 International Regulators' Offshore Safety Forum Offshore occupational safety and health. 
			 International Group of Experts on the Explosion Risk of Unstable Substances Energetic and oxidising substances and explosives, propellants and pyrotechnics. 
			 International Collaborative Group on Environmentally Assisted Cracking Nuclear energy safety. 
			 European Agency for Safety and Health at Work European Week of Safety and Health at Work, occupational safety and health statistics. 
			 European Union Administration and Cooperation Groups Occupational safety and health in machinery, pressure, lifts and equipment for use in explosive atmospheres. 
			 European Commission: Eurostat Occupational safety and health statistics. 
			 European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions Occupational safety and health statistics. 
			 European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Occupational health and safety standards. 
			 European Trade Union Institute for Research, Education and Health and Safety Collaboration to develop methodology to obtain user information for the design of tools. 
			 European Senior Labour Inspectorate Committee Exchange of information and good practice on occupational safety and health enforcement. 
			 European Working Group on Reactor Dosimetry Nuclear energy safety. 
			 European Chemicals Bureau and competent authorities in all EU Member States Classification, labelling and safe use of chemicals. 
			 North Sea Offshore Authorities Forum Offshore occupational safety and health. 
			 French Government-Ministere des Affaires Sociales (Ministry for Social Affairs) Developing joint policy on machinery safety issues. 
			 German Government- Ministerium fur Umwelt und Verkehr (Ministry for Environment and Transport) Machinery safety issues. 
			 Dutch Government-Arbeidsinspectie Expertisecentrum Developing procedure to deal with the application of EU Supply Directives. 
			 Dutch State Supervision of Mines Offshore occupational safety and health. 
			 Danish Energy Authority Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs Offshore occupational safety and health. 
			 Petroleum Safety Authority Norway Offshore occupational safety and health. 
			 US Occupational Safety and Health Administration Occupational safety and health in ground handling activities in air transport. 
			 Atlantic Alliance (UK, USA, Germany, Ireland, Australia) Occupational safety and health in quarries. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B1: Work carried out by HSL on contract for overseas governments and public bodies 
			  Organisation  Area of work 
			 European Commission Creation and the promotion of an inclusive risk governance culture. 
			 European Commission Quantification and control of the hazards associated with the transport and bulk storage of fireworks. 
			 European Commission Handbook for approval of hydrogen refuelling stations. 
			 European Commission Sharing experience on risk management to design future industrial systems. 
			 European Commission Safety of hydrogen as an energy carrier. 
			 European Commission Safe production and use of nanomaterials. 
			 Health and Safety Inspectorate, Gibraltar Dock work safety. 
			 Health and Safety Authority, Ireland Exchange of information, advice and support on process safety issues. 
			 Finnish Institute of Occupational Health Occupational health and safety research topic centre. 
			 Institut National de I'Environment Industriel et des Risques (INERIS), France Hydrogen safety course. 
			 Institut Quimic de Sarria, Spain Explosives and explosives prevention. 
			 National Institute of Occupational Hygiene, South Africa Assessment of measurement and analysis of chemicals. 
			 County Wexford Garda, Ireland Diving equipment examination. 
			 University of Wuerzburg, Germany Risk assessment 
			 TNO Quality of Life, The Netherlands Development of worked examples for exposure scenarios of biocidal products to humans. 
			 CRP Centro para la Prevencion de Riesgos Professionales, Columbia Urine sample analysis. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B2: Work carried out by HSL on contract for overseas commercial interests 
			  Organisation  Area of work 
			 European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), Belgium Analysis of chemicals. 
			 The Oil Companies European Organisation for Environment, Health and Safety (CONCAWE), Belgium Analytical support for gasoline risk assessment. 
			 Hilti Aktiengesellschaft, Leichtenstein Tests on two fastening tools to assist the client in self-certification. 
			 Adisseo France SAS, France Measurement of dustiness of one powder. 
			 Saint Gobain Cree, France Measurement of dustiness of three carbon powders. 
			 Microclean Environmental Ltd, Ireland Analysis of chemical samples. 
			 EHS Risk Management Services, Ireland Nitrous oxide sampling. 
			 AB Achema, Lithuania Testing resistance to detonation. 
			 Borax Rotterdam NV, The Netherlands Testing chemicals in air filter samples. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B3: Work carried out by HSL on contract for a consortium of overseas public bodies and commercial interests 
			 Organisation Area of work 
			 Danish Gas Technology Centre, Denmark; Gastec Technology BV, The Netherlands; Directorate for Civil Protection and Emergency Planning, Norway Group sponsored research project on area classification for secondary releases from low-pressure natural gas systems in naturally and mechanically ventilated indoor locations.

Housing Benefit

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what average level of housing benefit was paid to claimants in  (a) local authority,  (b) housing association and  (c) private rented accommodation in each London borough in (i) the latest month for which information is available and (ii) the same month in 2005-06.

James Plaskitt: The most recent available information is for November 2005. Information for November 2004 has been provided for comparison. The information is in the table.
	
		
			  Average amounts of housing benefit in payment by tenure in London boroughs: November 2004 and 2005 
			  London borough  November 2004  November 2005 
			   LA  RSL  Private  LA  RSL  Private 
			 Barking 61.46 70.27 117.92 65.32 74.97 124.07 
			 Barnet 75.61 125.66 143.45 78.07 125.15 148.85 
			 Bexley 253.40 69.47 112.63 303.64 71.98 116.12 
			 Brent 88.11 113.09 135.05 91.61 117.11 139.48 
			 Bromley (1) 75.36 121.71 (1) 78.33 127.93 
			 Camden 80.68 96.81 135.21 84.12 101.08 141.62 
			 City of London 75.53 85.77 110.38 76.44 89.77 111.83 
			 Croydon 69.09 90.35 127.80 71.58 91.80 133.00 
			 Ealing 92.41 98.10 130.38 99.98 99.26 137.08 
			 Enfield 98.23 106.05 128.97 103.04 108.71 137.66 
			 Greenwich 60.94 76.02 112.39 63.19 78.93 119.36 
			 Hackney 76.67 86.32 128.13 78.59 90.91 137.90 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 78.40 87.04 120.70 85.42 94.85 141.35 
			 Haringey 105.11 107.77 116.30 114.35 111.44 121.95 
			 Harrow 71.75 139.92 138.63 72.12 142.06 143.18 
			 Havering 52.33 73.71 113.11 58.64 75.67 117.82 
			 Hillingdon 97.76 80.94 121.59 105.93 80.89 128.95 
			 Hounslow 72.63 80.71 122.84 77.47 82.33 128.36 
			 Islington 75.14 83.13 118.71 77.55 89.17 126.52 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 101.99 84.59 165.65 113.43 89.19 170.65 
			 Kingston upon Thames 89.74 82.26 127.91 94.23 86.42 132.34 
			 Lambeth 81.02 73.48 110.43 86.58 77.75 115.03 
			 Lewisham 59.12 80.29 88.31 63.52 85.00 137.71 
			 Merton 60.85 80.87 125.17 65.18 84.05 132.83 
			 Newham 100.09 120.11 116.30 120.81 120.60 123.35 
			 Redbridge 130.24 92.45 123.13 141.16 94.38 131.01 
			 Richmond upon Thames 251.81 69.50 130.61 245.84 72.82 138.23 
			 Southwark 65.45 78.87 118.05 67.95 81.51 119.76 
			 Sutton 60.29 78.44 120.86 63.31 82.80 126.01 
			 Tower Hamlets 89.13 79.20 120.60 92.91 82.18 140.05 
			 Waltham Forest 89.11 76.67 105.61 96.46 79.13 114.55 
			 Wandsworth 77.78 100.29 130.60 83.01 101.83 175.69 
			 Westminster 119.12 115.58 171.96 144.40 109.52 179.86 
			 (1) Data is nil or non applicable. This includes cases where the average amounts have been suppressed if the corresponding caseloads are nil or negligible.  Notes:  1. Average amounts have been rounded to the nearest penny. 2. LA = local authority, RSL = registered social landlord. 3. LA figures include non-HRA rent rebates.  Source:  Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. caseload stock-count taken in November 2004 and November 2005.

Information Technology

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the  (a) originally estimated,  (b) most recently estimated and  (c) out-turn cost was in each of the five largest information technology contracts agreed with outside suppliers over the last five years.

James Purnell: Information that is available is in the following table.
	
		
			  Contract  Supplier  Original contract estimate ( million)  Most recently estimated ( million) 
			 Accord / Standard Services Business Allocation (SSBA) EDS 3,433.5 2,396.8 
			 Accord / Integrated Communications and Network Services (ICONS) BT 1,411.3 870.0 
			 Pensions Transformation Project Accenture 129.0 122.0 
			 Benefits Processing Replacement Programme / Working Age Transformation and Change Programme IBM 123.4 79.7 
			 Central Payment System Siemens 59.6 59.6

Medical Assessments

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of medical assessments for benefit entitlement have been appealed in each of the last five years; and what proportion of appeals for each benefit has been successful.

Vera Baird: I have been asked to reply.
	I refer the hon. Member to the response I gave to his question of 27 June 2006,  Official Report, column 286W, as the information asked for is not available in the format requested. Data are collected by benefit type rather than by whether a medical assessment is carried out.

New Deal for Disabled People

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  if he will take steps to make the New Deal for Disabled People open to those who are in receipt of jobseeker's allowance who are partially sighted; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what equipment is available for those on New Deal for Disabled People.

Anne McGuire: New Deal for Disabled People (NDDP) services are available to people with a health condition or disability, including those who are partially sighted, who are in receipt of a range of benefits. Eligible benefits include incapacity benefit and income support with a disability premium, but not jobseeker's allowance (JSA). We have no plans to change the eligibility criteria for the programme.
	There is no specific funding for equipment for NDDP customers and it is not a requirement of the programme to provide equipment. However, NDDP job brokers have the flexibility to use their funds to provide equipment, if they feel it is appropriate to do so. Equipment can also be accessed through other provision, for example, the adviser discretion fund (ADF), which enables the purchase of almost anything, up to a limit of 100 within a 12-month period, that will help a customer obtain a job or take up an offer of employment. NDDP customers can access ADF through Jobcentre Plus advisers.
	Access to Work also helps disabled people enter and stay in employment by providing a range of practical help to them and their employers, including the provision of equipment to help overcome barriers faced at work as a result of disability.

Office Equipment

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) personal computers,  (b) laptops,  (c) servers,  (d) printers,  (e) scanners,  (f) photocopiers and  (g) fax machines (i) his Department and (ii) each (A) non-departmental public body, (B) Executive agency and (C) other public body for which his Department is responsible in (1) Scotland, (2) Wales, (3) each English region and (4) Northern Ireland owned in (x) 2003-04 and (y) 2004-05.

Anne McGuire: DWP central asset registers do not hold the requested data in national and regional splits. Assets owned by DWP are held against individual business units and by financial cost centre. The information is therefore provided below by year and by business unit.
	In addition to the assets owned by DWP, the Department also utilises equipment owned by our major IT service provider EDS, under PFI arrangements. The figures for these supplier-owned assets are included separately.
	There were approximately 130,000 staff in DWP in March 2005 and significantly more PCs than people. There are several reasons for this, including PCs allocated to;
	Part-time staff on an individual basis
	Staff who work from more than one site or from home
	Business testing and training (e.g. for our large modernisation programme)
	The time lag between staff reductions and equipment removals.
	The figure continues to fall. We estimate that the current figure is 147,794 PCs and 8,169 laptops. The contractual and budgetary provisions of the recently aligned contract with EDS are designed to drive the numbers down further and to provide significantly improved asset management services.
	The returns for non-departmental bodies for which DWP is responsible have been obtained from each individual body.
	Photocopiers can be purchased or leased by local management and central figures are not available, however, a central DWP leasing arrangement for mid-range copiers indicates that 5,123 copiers were leased as at March 2005.
	The information is contained within the following tables:
	
		
			  March 2004 
			   PCs  Laptops  Servers  Printers  Scanners  Copiers  Fax 
			 Appeals Agency (inc Tribunal non-Departmental Public Bodies) 1,384 238 55 686 10 7 90 
			 Jobcentre Plus 69,742 2,618 951 14,498 195 408 27 
			 Child Support Agency 13,408 1,080 135 1,525 14 43 27 
			 Corporate Centre 34,803 4,362 3,981 6,932 179 53 0 
			 Disability and Carers 60 7 1 11 0 0 0 
			 Pensions 19,457 2,562 134 2,894 58 13 8 
			 Health and Safety Executive, Health and Safety Commission, Health and Safety Laboratory 904 207 50 292 65 164 45 
			 Rent Service Part of Office of Deputy Prime Minister so no data available for this year 
			 Disability Rights Commission 294 71 33 38 9 7 9 
			 Independent Living Funds 190 19 11 53 0 4 8 
			 Pensions Protection Fund 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Health and Safety Commission(1)
			 Pensions Regulator 280 55 43 40 6 5 10 
			 Remploy Limited 800 900 123 1,600 200 100 250 
			 Disability Employment Advisory Committee(2)
			 Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Industrial Injuries Advisory Council 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 National Employment Panel 39 10 0 13 1 0 1 
			 Social Security Advisory Committee 5 1 0 2 0 0 1 
			 Office Pensions Ombudsman 43 2 1 14 1 2 1 
			 Motability 150 9 11 15 2 6 3 
			 Independent Review Service and Social 189 3 5 51 3 5 12 
			 
			  Fund Commissioner
			 Pensions Advisory Service 44 4 3 16 1 3 2 
			 EDS owned equipment 48,237 4,002 1,900 13,265 117 0 0 
			 Total 190,034 16,150 7,437 41,945 861 820 494 
			 (1) Included in House  (2 )Included in Corporate Centre   Note:  Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board has no equipment. 
		
	
	
		
			  March 2005 
			   PCs  Laptops  Servers  Printers  Scanners  Copiers  Fax 
			 Appeals Agency (inc Tribunal non Departmental Public Bodies) 1,358 233 47 706 7 4 81 
			 Jobcentre Plus 65,310 1,552 1,084 11,336 116 404 27 
			 Child Support Agency 12,830 835 151 1,350 14 43 27 
			 Corporate Centre 20,702 3,657 3,699 3,579 131 35 10 
			 Disability and Carers 8,020 263 161 1,739 14 4 0 
			 Pensions 18,915 2,874 148 2,802 61 13 1 
			 Health and Safety Executive, Health and Safety Commission, Health and Safety Laboratory 981 270 56 131 22 132 27 
			 Rent Service 908 235 161 333 25 39 90 
			 Disability Rights Commission 314 82 43 51 14 7 9 
			 Independent Living Funds 250 33 17 54 0 4 9 
			 Pensions Protection Fund 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Health and Safety Commission(1)
			 Pensions Regulator 400 60 65 42 6 5 12 
			 Remploy Limited 800 900 123 1,600 200 120 300 
			 Disability Employment Advisory Committee(2)
			 Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Industrial Injuries Advisory Council 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 National Employment Panel 39 10 0 13 1 0 1 
			 Social Security Advisory Committee 6 2 0 2 0 0 1 
			 Office Pensions Ombudsman 43 2 1 14 1 2 1 
			 Motability 120 15 11 15 4 6 3 
			 Independent Review Service and Social Fund Commissioner 211 5 6 51 3 5 12 
			 Pensions Advisory Service 44 4 3 16 1 3 2 
			 EDS owned equipment 44,975 4,553 1,900 12,757 121 0 0 
			 Total 176,231 15,585 7,659 36,591 741 826 613 
			 (1) Included in House  (2) Included in Corporate Centre  Note:  Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board has no equipment.

Official Visits

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on how many occasions he has visited each region in an official capacity in the last 12 months.

Anne McGuire: In the last 12 months the Secretary of State has made the following number of official visits to each region:
	
		
			   Number 
			 East 1 
			 East Midlands 5 
			 London 3 
			 North East 1 
			 North West 2 
			 Northern Ireland 1 
			 Scotland 2 
			 South West 1 
			 West Midlands 1 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 1 
		
	
	All visits were conducted in accordance with the ministerial code. The official visits figures do not include speeches in London or departmental visits without an external dimension.

Outsourcing

David Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what administrative functions for which his Department is responsible are outsourced overseas; and what assessment he has made of the merits of outsourcing further such functions overseas.

Anne McGuire: None of the administrative functions for which the Department for Work and Pensions is responsible are outsourced overseas.
	Currently the Department has no intention to locate administration functions overseas, therefore no assessment has been made of the merits.

Pension Credit

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the  (a) number and  (b) proportion of pensioners receiving pension credit in (i) 2020, (ii) 2030, (iii) 2040 and (iv) 2050 on the basis of the proposals made by the Pensions Commission; and if he will make a statement.

James Purnell: The Pensions Commission made no projections of receipt of pension credit in its second report A New Pension Settlement for the Twenty-First Century, giving figures for eligibility instead. These are shown in figure 6.42 on page 294.

Public Appointments

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many public appointments are within his patronage; what  (a) salary and  (b) other emoluments are attached to each; and what the comparable figures were in (i) 1976, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1996.

Anne McGuire: Details of the public appointments to public bodies sponsored by The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) can be found in Public Bodies, copies of which are in the Library. Public Bodies has been published annually since 1980 and the most recent edition provides figures for 2005. Each edition of Public Bodies contains details on the number of public appointments and remuneration details for that particular year. DWP was established in June 2001 and stewardship of those of its public bodies in existence before this time sat within its predecessor Departments. Comparable information for 1976, 1986 and 1996 in respect of DWP public bodies could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Details of the latest remuneration for each of the 130 public appointments to the bodies sponsored by DWP are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Non-departmental public body (NDPB)/Year established  Public appointments  Remuneration 
			 Disability Employment Advisory Committee (DEAC) 2002 Chair Unpaid(1) 
			  14 Members Unpaid(1) 
			
			 Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board (DLAAB) 1991 Chair 286.00 per day 
			  7 Medical Members 243.00 per day 
			   121. 50 per half day 
			  10 Non-Medical Members 134.00 per day 
			   67.00 per half day 
			
			 Disability Rights Commission (DRC) 2000 Chair 117,000 per annum 
			  14 Members 150.00 per day 
			
			 Health and Safety Commission (HSC) 1974 Chair 126,594 per annum 
			  9 Members 15,435.00 per annum 
			
			 Independent Living Funds (ILF) 1993 Chair Unpaid 
			  6 Members Unpaid 
			
			 Industrial Injuries Advisory Council IIAC) 1948 Chair 260.00 per full council meeting and 
			   141 per council sub-group meeting 
			  15 Members 141.00 per meeting 
			
			 National Employment Panel (NEP) 2001 Chair Unpaid 
			  23 Members Unpaid 
			
			 Pensions Ombudsman (PO) 1991 Pension Protection Fund Ombudsman (PPFO) 2005 Ombudsman 122,186.00 per annum 
			  Deputy Ombudsman 83,946.00 per annum 
			
			 Pensions Protection Fund (PPF) 2005 Chair 82, 934. 80 per annum 
			  5 Members 15,171.00 per annum 
			
			 Remploy Ltd. 1945 Chair 38,634 per annum 
			  6 Non-Executive Directors 7,500.00 per annum 
			
			 Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) 1980 Chair 21,000 per annum 
			  13 Members 210.00 per day 
			
			 The Pensions Regular (TPR) 2005 Chair 103,668.50 per annum 
			  5 Members 10,114.00 per annum 
			 (1 )Loss of earnings up to a maximum daily rate of 138 may be claimed.

Redundancies

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much  (a) his Department and  (b) the agencies for which he has responsibility spent on redundancy payments in each of the last four years.

Anne McGuire: The amount spent by the Department on all staff early release schemes in each of the last four years is in the following table.
	
		
			   million 
			  Business Area  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  Total 
			 The Pension Service 0.2 0.19 1.29 14.1 15.7 
			 Child Support Agency 0.83 0.82 0.84 4.5 7.0 
			 Disability and Carers Service n/a n/a 0 7.0 7.0 
			 The Appeals Service 0.15 0.17 0.2 0.2 0.7 
			 Jobcentre Plus 0 0.18 0.55 69.0 69.7 
			 Health and Safety Executive 2.08 0.65 0.75 0.0 3.5 
			 The Rent Service n/a n/a 1.7 0.0 1.7 
			 Departmental Corporate Units 16.17 14.11 9.58 43.5 83.3 
			 Total 19.43 16.12 14.91 138.3 188.6 
			 n/a = Denotes that the Agency did not exist in the Department in the year in question.  Notes: 1. A proportion of the ongoing annual pension payments for early retirement cases are held centrally and included in the Departmental Corporate Units' line from 2004-05 and 2005-06. 2. The figures do not include the provisions made in the accounts for costs associated with staff approved for early release in 2006-07.

Remploy

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will answer Question 77480, on the review of Remploy, tabled by the hon. Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole on 9 June.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 26 June 2006
	I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave on 26 June 2006,  Official Report, column 64W.

Sulphuric Acid

John Horam: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Scientific Committee on Occupational Exposure Levels has made progress in determining whether sulphuric acid should be classified as a carcinogen; and if he will make a statement on current occupational exposure limits to sulphuric acid mist.

Anne McGuire: The European Commission's Scientific Committee for Occupational Exposure Limits (SCOEL) does not make formal recommendations concerning the classification of chemicals. The responsibility for this falls to the Classification and Labelling Working Group established by the European Chemicals Bureau and this Group has not considered the classification of sulphuric acid as a carcinogen. However, in its deliberations leading to recommendations on occupational exposure limits, SCOEL undertakes an assessment of the evidence on all aspects of the substances under consideration, including whether or not a substance may have particular properties, including the potential to cause cancer in humans.
	In relation to sulphuric acid mist, for which a Recommendation for an occupational exposure limit was published in October 2004, SCOEL felt that the balance of evidence from studies in worker populations was sufficient to indicate that sulphuric acid mist has the potential to cause laryngeal cancer in humans. However, there were insufficient data to reliably inform on the airborne exposure conditions that were associated with the increased incidence of laryngeal cancer in these studies. In relation to the mechanism whereby sulphuric acid mist causes laryngeal cancer, SCOEL concluded that it is based on long-term chronic irritation of the laryngeal epithelium, and that airborne exposures that are below the threshold for the induction of such irritant effects would not lead to any increased risk of cancer.
	SCOEL recommended that an 8-hour time-weighted average occupational exposure limit, set at 0.05 mg.m-3, would not lead to any adverse health effects in workers, and would not be associated with any increased risk of cancer.
	In November 2001 the Health and Safety Executive published a Chemical Hazard Alert Notice for sulphuric acid mist, which recommended that employers should control mist exposure to below 0.3 mg.m-3, in line with advice from the National Sulphuric Acid Association. The 8-hour time-weighted average occupational exposure standard (OES) for sulphuric acid, formerly set at 1 mg.m-3, was withdrawn by the Health and Safety Commission in May 2003. There is currently no British occupational exposure limit.

Tax Credits

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library all documents regarding discussions held between his Department and HM Revenue and Customs on the use of National Insurance numbers in determining the eligibility for tax credits of an individual who has failed verification rule 12 of the Tax Credits Manual on Residency Criteria Not Met.

James Plaskitt: Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide range of organisations both within Government and outside as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the practice to provide details of all such meetings.

HEALTH

Animal-based Insulin

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of Novo Nordisk's discontinuation of pork insulin crystal production in Brazil; and what representations she has  (a) made and  (b) received on the matter;
	(2)  what recent assessment she has made of the supply of raw materials required to produce animal-based insulin; and if she will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will take steps to ensure that the availability of animal insulin in the UK is not adversely affected by the discontinuation of animal insulin crystal production at Novo Nordisk's Brazilian manufacturing facility which supplies raw materials to Wockhardt UK; and if she will make a statement.

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Wockhardt UK uses raw materials sourced from the Biobras pharmaceuticals facility in Brazil to manufacture their animal insulin products.

Andy Burnham: The Department has had no involvement with NovoNordisk's production of insulin crystals, although I am aware that it acquired the Brazilian company, Biobras, a number of years ago. NovoNordisk has announced that it is discontinuing its animal derived insulins on a worldwide basis. However, animal insulins will remain available from Wockhardt UK, who has confirmed that future supplies of these products are independent of NovoNordisk.

Avian Influenza

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what account she took of the 50 per cent. fatality rate from H5N1 in determining the 2.5 per cent. fatality rate assumption for the relevant UK contingency plan.

Rosie Winterton: Although the H5N1 virus has a reported fatality rate of around 50 per cent. in humans, there is some question regarding the accuracy of this figure. This is partly because we cannot guarantee that all H5N1 cases have been recorded. It is important to remember that fatality rates for pandemic flu have historically been lower than H5N1 avian flu. For example, the 1918 pandemic was the most severe in the 20th century and this had a fatality rate of around 2 per cent. This 2.5 per cent. figure was informed by international consensus and expert advice. Our modellers have taken the fatality rate of the H5N1 virus into consideration when agreeing this figure.

Community Hospitals

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate her Department has made of the number of community hospital beds in the Yorkshire Wolds and Coast Primary Care Trust area in each year since 1997.

Ivan Lewis: This information is not collected centrally.

Community Hospitals

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate her Department has made of the number of community hospital beds likely to be needed in east Yorkshire over the next five years.

Ivan Lewis: This information is not held by the Department. It is now for primary care trusts in partnership with strategic health authorities and other local stakeholders to plan, develop and improve services for local people.

Community Hospitals

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health further to her oral statement of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 826, on community hospitals, how many community hospitals have  (a) opened and  (b) closed in the Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire strategic health authority area since 1997; and how many are being considered for closure.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is not held centrally.

Community Hospitals

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her oral statement of 5 July 2006,  Official Report, column 820, in which primary care trust areas the pilot community hospitals tariff to which she referred will be introduced next year.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 13 July 2006
	We will set out shortly our plans for the national tariff in 2007-08, but we have never said there will be a community hospital tariff.

Crystal Blue Consulting

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the terms are of the contract her Department has with Crystal Blue Consulting in respect of a review of the impact of the market forces factor in the funding and operation of local health trusts; and what timetable has been set for  (a) completion of the work and  (b) publishing its findings.

Andy Burnham: The advisory committee on resource allocation (ACRA) is carrying out a review of the approach to calculating the staff market forces factor (MFF). To inform the review and following a competitive tendering exercise, the Department has let a contract with Crystal Blue Consulting to examine the feasibility of using national health service costs in calculating the staff MFF. It is expected that the work will be completed by autumn this year. The publication of the findings will be considered later.

Dentistry

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the outcome was of discussions between her Department, the North West London Strategic Health Authority and Hillingdon Primary Care Trust on the estimated 200,000 shortfall in the devolved dentistry budget for Hillingdon.

Rosie Winterton: No formal discussions have been held between the Department, the then North West London strategic health authority and Hillingdon primary care trust (PCT) about the devolved dentistry budget for Hillingdon. However, I have been informed that Hillingdon PCT has now resolved this matter to its satisfaction.

Electrical Fields

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research has been conducted  (a) by and  (b) for her Department into the health impacts from electrical fields from (i) mobile phones, (ii) other electronic equipment in the home or workplace and (iii) major external sources, including power cables, mobile phone masts and other transmitters; and what steps she (A) has taken and (B) plans to take to tackle the potential effects on health of electrical fields.

Caroline Flint: The Health Protection Agency's radiation protection division (HPA-RPD) keeps the worldwide research findings on electric and magnetic fields (EMF) and health under review. In 2004 the HPA-RPD, previously the National Radiological Protection Board, undertook a comprehensive review of the existing body of research to date and formally recommended the adoption of EMF exposure guidelines published in 1998 by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). The HPA advice is available on its website at www.hpa.org.uk/radiation/publications/documents_of_nrpb/pdfs/doc_15_2.pdf. The ICNIRP guidelines also form the basis of the 1999 European Recommendation (EC/519/1999) on limiting EMF public exposure.

English Partnerships

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2006 to question 77864,  Official Report, column 817W, how many of the 96 national health service sites acquired by English Partnerships on 6 April 2005 have been sold.

Yvette Cooper: Of the 96 former hospital sites acquired by English Partnerships in April 2005, the following four sites have been sold so far:
	Park Prewett, Basingstoke (part)
	Linton Hospital, Maidstone
	Renny Lodge, Newport Pagnell
	Sheppey Hospital, Isle of Sheppey
	Three of these sitesRenny Lodge, Linton Hospital and part of Park Prewett will provide over 300 homes as part of the Design for Manufacture competition.
	English Partnerships is working with partners to bring forward sites as quickly as possible and hopes to be able to announce preferred developers for a further four sites later this year.

Environmental Management

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether her Department  (a) is committed to the achievement of environmental management to ISO14001 standard and  (b) has been externally certified as in compliance with that standard; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: This Department is committed to maintaining the best possible standards of environmental management. We are working towards certification under IS014001. We have not been externally certified but are working towards certification.

FIFA World Cup

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which matches  (a) she and  (b) other Ministers in her Department attended at the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany in their ministerial capacity; at what cost to public funds; and with what contributions from third party organisations.

Ivan Lewis: The Secretary of State for Health and Ministers in her Department attended none of the FIFA World Cup matches in their ministerial capacity, so there was no cost to public funds.

Fraser Day Hospital

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate has been made by Milton Keynes Primary Care Trust of the value of the Fraser Day Hospital site in Newport Pagnell;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the annual saving to Milton Keynes Primary Care Trust (PCT) of the proposed closure of the Fraser Day Hospital in Newport Pagnell, expressed in  (a) real terms and  (b) as a percentage of the PCT's annual budget.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 13 July 2006
	The continued use of the suite of rooms forming the Fraser Day Hospital for health-related services is being investigated and, as such, the value of the primary care trust's legal interest in this accommodation is not required at the present time. The provision of local health care facilities is the responsibility of the Milton Keynes Primary Care Trust (PCT), with the support of their strategic health authority. It is for the PCT to estimate any costs of changes in service arrangements.

Healthcare Commission

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the Healthcare Commission will begin consideration of the case of Alan Jones (Case No. C200506_0165).

Andy Burnham: The Chairman of the Healthcare Commission has confirmed that the Commission has now started to review this case. The Chairman has added that a member of the Commission's complaints staff has contacted the complainant.

In-patient Operations

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) patients resident in Wales and  (b) other patients had been waiting more than six months for an NHS in-patient operation at an English hospital at the end of June 2006.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is not currently available. Waiting times data relating to the end of June will be published on Friday 28 July.

Maternity Services

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence report on maternity services was altered after completion and before publication; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is developing a guideline on care during labour. During the preparation of the draft guideline, the Department, as one of the instituted stakeholders, asked whether or not the available evidence precisely supported one of the recommendations made in the guideline. This related to advice on the risks and benefits of the different places of birth. NICE reflected on this, took further advice, and made a minor change to the relevant recommendation.

Multiple Sclerosis

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what representations she has received on the availability of disease-modifying therapies for people with multiple sclerosis in Staffordshire; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  if she will meet the MS Society to discuss the terms of reference of the North Staffordshire Review Panel assessing the cost-effectiveness of disease- modifying therapies for people with multiple sclerosis.

Ivan Lewis: The Secretary of State has received no recent representations on the availability of disease modifying therapies for people with multiple sclerosis in Staffordshire. The local health community is responsible for decisions around the provision of national health service treatment. The Multiple Sclerosis Society may wish to discuss its concerns about the terms of reference of the North Staffordshire review panel with NHS West Midlands.

National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has considered amending its assessment of cost effectiveness to include a factor of care time in the outcome.

Andy Burnham: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's (NICE) Guide to the Methods of Technology Appraisal is published on NICE's website at www.nice.org.uk, and gives details of the methodology NICE uses in carrying out its appraisals. NICE reviews its methods guide approximately every three years following consultation with stakeholder organisations, including those representing patients, carers, health care professions and manufacturers. The guide was last updated in 2004.

Newham PCT

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of Newham Primary Care Trust's financial position; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: The 2005-06 provisional unaudited financial position of all national health service organisations was announced on 7 June. A full report on the 2005-06 NHS financial performance and a series of tables showing the financial position of all NHS organisations is available in the Library.

Newham PCT

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards the six national NHS priorities in Newham Primary Care Trust area; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: It is for the local national health service to assess the primary care trust's progress in meeting the six national NHS priorities.

NHS Complaints

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of complaints against the NHS brought to the attention of the Healthcare Commission have been referred back to the trust of origin for resolution without further investigation.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 4 July 2006
	The chairman of the Healthcare Commission has confirmed that in 2005-06 31 per cent. of cases were referred back for further work by the health care provider concerned following a review of the local complaint handling by the Healthcare Commission.

NHS Complaints

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many complaints against the NHS brought to the attention of the Healthcare Commission and not referred back to the trust of origin without further investigation are waiting to be investigated by a case manager of the Healthcare Commission; how long on average these cases have been waiting; and how many of these cases have been waiting more than  (a) eight weeks,  (b) six months and  (c) one year from receipt of the complaint.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 4 July 2006
	The chairman of the Healthcare Commission has confirmed that the Commission which faces a higher than expected numbers of referred cases, has introduced an eight week target to cases received since 1 April 2006. There are currently 2,261 cases awaiting further investigation, of which 1,136 are over six months old with none over 12 months old.

NHS Finance

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment her Department has made of the financial position of primary care trusts that are significantly under their weighted capitation target; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: Our analysis of the 2005-06 financial positions of national health service organisations has shown that there is no strong relationship between financial performance and any single factor, including distance from capitation target. A full report on 2005-06 financial performance is available in the Library.

NHS Finance

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much notice was given to primary care trusts of their financial obligation to the London risk pool;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the likelihood of there being a need for additional contributions by London primary care trusts to the London strategic health authority risk pool in 2007-08;
	(3)  when London primary care trusts are expected to be informed of any need to contribute funds to a London strategic health authority risk pool for 2007-08;
	(4)  when Newham Primary Care Trust is expected to receive a refund of its contribution to the risk pool for the London strategic health authority.

Andy Burnham: The new strategic health authorities (SHAs) will take the lead locally in developing and implementing a service and financial strategy for managing the financial position within their locality. This will include creating local reserves to deal with local problems.
	It is for SHAs locally to determine the level of contribution to reserves and the application of those reserves. The level determined will reflect local financial circumstances.
	London primary care trusts (PCTs) were advised of their financial obligation to the London risk pool formally at the beginning of March 2006. London PCTs were made aware of this matter some weeks prior to that date via briefing from their previous local SHAs. PCT contributions will be repayable within three years with 2006-07 contributions expected to be repaid over the period 2007 to 2010. Repayment schedules are currently being agreed with deficit organisations.
	The London SHA is still working on its plans for this year and is closely engaged with the Department on this issue. There is no timetable yet for the 2007-08 national operating framework and any contributions for 2007-08 will be subject to review.

NHS Finance

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will assess the effectiveness of the weighted capitation targets in addressing health inequalities in the NHS.

Andy Burnham: Tackling health inequalities is within the remit of all primary care trusts (PCTs). Those PCTs with the worst health and deprivation indicators work to support public service agreement targets to narrow the health inequalities gaps in life expectancy, cardiovascular disease and cancer between their areas and the England average. To support this work, the weighted capitation formula takes account of deprivation.

NHS Finance

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether spearhead primary care trusts will be given priority when primary care trust contributions to strategic health authority risk pools are repaid.

Andy Burnham: Strategic health authorities (SHAs) are responsible for the performance management of their national health service organisations and ensuring they achieve financial balance. SHAs should take the lead locally in developing and implementing a service and financial strategy for managing the financial position within their locality. For 2006-07, this will include creating local reserves to deal with local problems.
	The reserves will have to be paid back to organisations in future years when the organisations currently in deficit start producing surpluses. It will be repaid, normally in the three-year allocation period. SHAs have been asked to ensure that primary care trusts with the greatest health need are the first to be repaid.

NHS IT Support

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made against each target on pages five and six of her Department's publication Delivering 21st century IT support for the NHS; what the completion date was for each target that has been met; and what the  (a) timetable and  (b) targets are for phases 1, 2 and 3 set out in paragraph 3.3.1.

Caroline Flint: The information requested has been placed in the Library.

Nurses

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of nursing graduates found nursing jobs within  (a) three months,  (b) six months and  (c) 12 months in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally.

Nurses

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average cost to public funds was of training a nurse in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: The estimated average annual cost to public funds of training a nursing student in each year since 1997 is shown in the table, although the data have been collected on different basis thereby making comparisons difficult.
	
		
			   Cost per individualbursary or salary and tuition () 
			 1997-98 11,625 
			 1998-99 10,500 
			 1999-2000 11,000 
			 2000-01 13,000 
			 2001-02 12,850 
			 2002-03 13,690 
			 2003-04 14,710 
			 2004-05 15,000 
			  Notes:  1. 1997-98 and 2004-05 are forecasts (actual outturn was only collected from 1999 onwards and the last data collected was in November 2004 covering 2003-04 outturn).  2. Average bursary costs for nurses and midwives added to tuition costs from 2000-01 onwards.

Nursing and Care Homes

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) nursing and  (b) residential care homes there were in (i) the Stroud constituency and (ii) Gloucestershire in (A) 1996, (B) 2001 and (C) 2005.

Ivan Lewis: Information on the number of homes was collected by the Department for the years 1996 and 2001. Table 1 shows the numbers of residential and nursing care homes in Gloucestershire as at 31 March in 1996 and 2001. Data are not available at constituency level.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of residential and nursing care homes in Gloucestershire, as at 31 March 1996 and 2001 
			  Rounded numbers 
			  Type of home  1996  2001 
			 Residential(1) 200 305 
			 Nursing(2,3) 140 110 
			 Total homes(4) 345 415 
			 (1 )Residential data are for Gloucestershire unitary authority.  (2) Nursing data are for Gloucestershire health authority.  (3) Nursing data include general nursing homes, mental nursing homes and private hospitals and clinics.  (4) Totals may not equal the sum of parts due to rounding.   Sources: For 1996Department of Health RAC 5 and K036 returns. For 2001Department of Health RA and RH(N) returns. 
		
	
	The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) produces data on the number of care homes and places registered as at 31 March each year, beginning with 2003. There are some definitional differences between this data and that for the years up to 2001.
	I understand from the chair of CSCI that the numbers of residential and nursing care homes, as at 31 March 2005, in Gloucester and South Gloucester local authorities are as shown in table 2. Data are not available at constituency level.
	
		
			  Table 2: Numbers of registered care and nursing homes in Gloucester and South Gloucester local authorities, as at 31 March 2005 
			  Local authority  Gloucester  South Gloucester  Total 
			 Residential care 276 97 373 
			 Nursing 64 23 87 
			 Total 340 120 460 
			  Source:  CSCI registration and inspection database.

Ormskirk Hospital Site

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which out-patient clinics are delivered from the Ormskirk hospital site; and with what frequency each occurs.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not held centrally. It can be obtained directly from the Southport and Ormskirk Hospital National Health Service Trust.

Ormskirk Hospital Site

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the new Independent Sector Treatment Centre scheduled for the Ormskirk Hospital site will be available to provide care to the residents of  (a) West Lancashire and  (b) the North-West.

Rosie Winterton: The Ormskirk Hospital site is one of several locations, named by the preferred bidder, from which services will be provided as part of the Cheshire and Merseyside electives surgery scheme, part of the next phase of the procurement in the independent sector treatment centre (ISTC) programme. The scheme is still currently being negotiated.
	As stated in The NHS in England: the operation framework for 2006/07, patient choice will be extended to include any national health service foundation trust and any nationally procured ISTC, and any other subsequently centrally accredited independent-sector providers.

Ormskirk Hospital Site

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the medical interventions planned at the Independent Sector Treatment Centre scheduled for the Ormskirk Hospital site require support from  (a) an intensive care unit and  (b) a high dependency unit.

Rosie Winterton: The case mix planned for the Cheshire and Merseyside electives surgery scheme includes gynaecology, ear, nose and throat, gastroenterology, orthopaedics, general surgery and plastics. Detailed discussions are still in progress between the bidder and the Southport and Ormskirk National Health Service Trust but at this stage, it is anticipated that, if required, the independent sector treatment centre will follow the protocol established at Ormskirk Hospital, which is to use intensive care and high dependency facilities at Southport Hospital.

Osteoporosis

Laura Moffatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice and assistance is made available to encourage GPs to take advantage through practice-based commissioning of programmes to identify patients at risk of osteoporosis; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: To maximise the benefits of practice- based commissioning (PBC), the Department has resourced and put in place a comprehensive programme providing training, support, and guidance material for general practitioner (GP) practices and primary care trusts (PCTs).
	This includes publication of the document Practice based commissioning: early wins and top tips, which contains tips to support PBC and suggestions as to how it can be used to redesign care pathways. This publication is available on the Department's website at www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/12/82/74/04128274.pdf and has been issued directly to all GP practices.
	This document does not specifically encourage GPs to take advantage of programmes to identify patients for their risk of osteoporosis. However, the document does encourage GP practices to take the principles of the case studies featured and extend these to providing services tailored to a particular practice's local population.

Oxygen Supplies

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment she has made of whether the companies which hold Home Oxygen therapy contracts are meeting the required service levels.

Andy Burnham: The transfer of patients to new suppliers is taking place over a six-month transitional period that ends on 31 July 2006. Working with the national health service, we are closely monitoring each company's capacity to deliver the required standard of service to all patients using oxygen therapy in the home. During this period, there is continuous assessment of suppliers with regular meetings to discuss suppliers' reports on progress and action to tackle emerging issues.

Paediatric Special Care

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to ensure that sick babies receive the special care they require.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has facilitated the development of 24 neonatal managed clinical networks to provide the safest and most effective service for mothers and babies. Since April 2003 over 70 million additional funding has been made available to support the development of networks. It is for individual networks to ensure there is an appropriate level of provision, including special care, to meet prevalent local demand.

Payment by Results

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to review the policy of payment by results in respect of the treatment and care of premature babies in the NHS; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: There are currently no tariffs for neonatal intensive care. Critical care is outside the scope of payment by results, and funding for the service continues to be locally negotiated between commissioners and providers. The range of services covered by payment by results is kept under review.

Prescription Charges (Exemptions)

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the list of foods and medicines exempt from prescription charges for those with certain medical conditions will be reviewed.

Andy Burnham: Certain foods are listed in part XV of the drug tariff in order that they may be prescribed. We have no plans to extend the existing list of medical conditions that give exemption from prescription charges.
	Prescription charges are currently being looked at by the Health Committee as part of its inquiry into national health service charges.

Primary Care Trust Budgets

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether funding for specialist myalgic encephalomyelitis/encephaliopathy and chronic fatigue syndrome services is contained within the baseline budget of primary care trusts.

Ivan Lewis: I can confirm that funding for specialist chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis services is included in the baseline budgets for primary care trusts.

Waiting Time Target

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many category A projects have so far been established, as described on page 26 of her Department's document 18 Week Patient Pathway: Delivery Resource Pack, where they have been established in each case; for which medical procedures they have been established; what conclusions have so far been drawn from the projects; when she expects the projects to conclude; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  which pioneer sites to assess the prospects for delivery of the 18-week waiting time target amongst category B procedures deemed high risk have so far been established; on which procedures they are concentrating in each case; where they are situated; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: The areas of greatest challenge identified in the delivery resource pack in relation to 18 weeks are orthopaedics, endoscopy, echocardiography and audiology. National projects are required in these category 'A' areas.
	In orthopaedics, a co-ordinating group of key stakeholders has been established, and a musculoskeletal services framework was published on 12 July 2006 on the Department's and the 18 week patient pathway websites. Work continues to identify and then tackle local performance levels.
	In endoscopy, work is well under way to identify performance levels and best practice, building on the work begun by the NHS Modernisation Agency. In cardiology, the project is identifying those tests that present the greatest challenge in terms of intervention rates and performance, including echocardiography.
	In audiology, most adult hearing services are accessed directly from primary care, and are therefore provided outside of the pathways covered by the 18-week target. However, waiting times for adult hearing services are too long and do need to be tackled, not least to ensure that referrals to such services are not diverted via ear, nose and throat departments (which are covered by 18 weeks) to benefit from the 18-week maximum wait that will apply by December 2008. Work is under way at official level, with stakeholders to be involved, and a plan will be published in due course, following ministerial approval.
	In terms of the high risk, category B areas, the eight 18-week pioneer health communities will soon turn their attention from developing the mechanisms by which whole pathways will be measured to redesigning pathways in the high risk areas identified in the delivery resource pack. The table shows the specialties being addressed by each of the pioneers. Magnetic resonance imaging, computerised tomography and non-obstetric ultrasound diagnostic tests are being addressed as part of these pathways.
	
		
			  Pioneer health community  Delivery solutions being addressed 
			 East Kent General surgery, gastroenterology, orthopaedics, cardiology 
			 Huntingdonshire Orthopaedics, endoscopy, neurology, dermatology 
			 North Nottinghamshire Gastroenterology, gynaecology, rheumatology, diabetes 
			 Devon and Exeter Cardiology, oral surgery, diabetes, plastic surgery 
			 Gateshead Orthopaedics, cardiology, rheumatology 
			 King's Orthopaedics, audiology, respiratory medicine 
			 North East Sector of Greater Manchester Trauma and orthopaedics, general surgery, general medicine 
			 South Bedfordshire Urology, ears, nose and throat, cardiology, ophthalmology

Waiting Time Target

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether she has identified an 18-week pathway clinical lead; and what the role of the clinical lead will be;
	(2)  what progress she has made in establishing the stakeholder group to support delivery of the 18-week waiting time target.

Andy Burnham: Dr. David Colin-Thom has been appointed clinical lead for the 18 weeks programme in addition to his role as national clinical director for primary care, as announced in Tackling Hospital Waiting: The 18 Week Patient PathwayAn Implementation Framework (paragraph 3.4). Dr. Colin-Thom's role on 18 weeks is to lead engagement with the clinical community, act as national lead for the clinical leads of particular specialty areas, co-chair the 18-week stakeholder group and provide advice on implementation issues as they arise.
	The 18-week pathway stakeholder group is made up of nominees from a range of national organisations, senior clinicians, managers and patients. It is intended that the group should normally meet monthly, alternating between the full group and a subset made up of the strategic health authority leads for 18 weeks. The subset met for the first time in June. The full group should meet for the first time in September.

Waiting Time Target

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what challenges to delivering the 18-week waiting time target have so far been identified by her Department; and which of these challenges are being used in the campaign to highlight key challenges from May;
	(2)  what key messages have been agreed to support delivery of the 18-week waiting time target, as stated on page 22 of her Department's document, 18 Week Patient Pathway: Delivery Resource Pack, published on 10th May 2006.

Andy Burnham: Key areas of challenge to delivering the 18-week waiting target were outlined in section two of the publication, Tackling Hospital Waiting: The 18 Week Patient PathwayAn Implementation Framework. Since publication, national projects have begun in orthopaedics and endoscopy, and the national project in cardiology is in development. Work is under way at official level on an audiology action plan and this will be published in due course following ministerial approval. The 18-week programme team and the Department have highlighted the key challenges at numerous events in the past few months, including the NHS Confederation conference. The team will shortly be holding events in each of the new strategic heath authorities to help prepare for delivery.
	This publication, which is available in the Library and on the Department's website at: www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/13/46/69/04134669.pdf also sets out the key messages for all groups involved in the delivery of 18 weeks, including the key actions required by various parties.